Serdar Bulun is a gynecologist, with a special interest in the common gynecologic diseases,

endometriosis Endometriosis is a disease of the female reproductive system in which cells similar to those in the endometrium, the layer of tissue that normally covers the inside of the uterus, grow outside the uterus. Most often this is on the ovaries, f ...

and uterine fibroids.Dyson MT, Roqueiro D, Monsivais D, et al. Genome-wide DNA methylation analysis predicts an epigenetic switch for GATA factor expression in endometriosis.''PLoS Genet''.2014;10(3):e1004158.
/ref>

Biography

Bulun was born in Malatya, Turkey in 1959 and moved to Istanbul to attend

Robert College The American Robert College of Istanbul ( tr, İstanbul Özel Amerikan Robert Lisesi or ), often shortened to Robert, or RC, is a Selective school, highly selective, Independent school, independent, mixed-sex education, co-educational Secondary ...

and thereafter

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

School of Medicine (Çapa Tıp Fakültesi). He completed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University at Buffalo in New York and pursued a sub-specialty fellowship in reproductive endocrinology-infertility at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Starting from 2003, he established a comprehensive women’s health research program at Northwestern, and recruited and supported numerous faculty who focus on steroid hormone-related pathology of uterine, breast and ovarian disorders. Throughout his career, Dr. Bulun has been awarded over $70 million of research funding in

, uterine fibroids and

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

.Ono M, Yin P, Navarro A, et al. Paracrine activation of WNT/beta-catenin pathway in uterine leiomyoma stem cells promotes tumor growth.''Proc Natl Acad Sci USA''.2013;110:17053-8.
/ref>Bulun SE, Lin Z, Imir G, et al. Regulation of aromatase expression in estrogen-responsive breast and uterine disease: from bench to treatment.''Pharmacol Rev''.2005;57:359-83.
/ref>Shozu M, Sebastian S, Takayama K, et al. Estrogen excess associated with novel gain-of-function mutations affecting the aromatase gene.''N Engl J Med''.2003;348:1855-65.
/ref>Demura M, Martin RM, Shozu M, et al. Regional rearrangements in chromosome 15q21 cause formation of cryptic promoters for the CYP19 (aromatase) gene.''Hum Mol Genet''.2007;16:2529-41.
/ref>Zhou J, Gurates B, Yang S, Sebastian S, Bulun SE. Malignant breast epithelial cells stimulate aromatase expression via promoter II in human adipose fibroblasts: an epithelial-stromal interaction in breast tumors mediated by CCAAT/enhancer binding protein beta.''Cancer Res''.2001;61:2328-34.
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Academic career

Bulun discovered the epigenetic basis of

leading to progesterone resistance in this disease, and introduced

aromatase inhibitors Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are a class of drugs used in the treatment of breast cancer in postmenopausal women and in men, and gynecomastia in men. They may also be used off-label to reduce estrogen conversion when supplementing testosterone exog ...

as a novel class of drugs to treat it.Attar E, Bulun SE. Aromatase inhibitors: the next generation of therapeutics for endometriosis?''Fertil Steril''.2006;85:1307-18.
/ref> His team isolated tumor stem cells from uterine fibroids and targeted these to treat this disease. His team discovered the first set of gain-of-function mutations affecting the aromatase gene leading to breast development and estrogen excess in prepubertal humans and contributed to the genetics and systems biology aspects of hormone-responsive disorders of the breast, including cancer. Bulun is the editor-in-chief of

Seminars in Reproductive Medicine ''Seminars in Reproductive Medicine'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed medical review journal covering the field of reproductive medicine. It was established in 1983 as ''Seminars in Reproductive Endocrinology'', obtaining its current name in 2000. I ...

. He has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine (formerly known as the Institute of Medicine), the Association of American Physicians and the American Society for Clinical Investigation. He served as the 2015 president for th
Society for Reproductive Investigation
He has received the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

-MERIT award for his work in

and the

American Society of Reproductive Medicine The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) is a nonprofit, multidisciplinary organization for advancement of the science and practice of reproductive medicine. The society has its headquarters in Washington, D.C and its administrati ...

Distinguished Researcher Award.

Honors

* National Academy of Medicine (formerly Institute of Medicine, IOM, elected 2015) * John J. Sciarra Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology,

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

(2012–present) * Association of American Physicians (AAP, elected 2012) *

American Society for Reproductive Medicine The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) is a nonprofit, multidisciplinary organization for advancement of the science and practice of reproductive medicine. The society has its headquarters in Washington, D.C and its administrativ ...

(ASRM) Distinguished Researcher Award (2012) *

MERIT (R37) Award HD38691 (2010-2020) * George H. Gardner Professor of Clinical Gynecology,

(2006-2012) * American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI, elected 2003)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulun, Serdar Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American gynecologists Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine alumni Members of the National Academy of Medicine