bioMérieux Awards Geraldine S. Hall the 2008 Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology

bioMérieux, a world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics, is proud to announce Geraldine S. Hall, Ph.D., as the 2008 recipient of the bioMérieux Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology. The award will be given during the 2008 American Society for Microbiology (ASM) 108th General Meeting Awards Ceremony and Dinner on June 2. Given in memory of Alexander Sonnenwirth, Ph.D., the award honors a top microbiologist for his or her innovation in clinical laboratory science, dedication to ASM and leadership in the microbiology field.

Presented by ASM and sponsored by bioMérieux since 1986, the award recognizes the advancement of clinical microbiology as a profession. On June 2, as part of a scientific session, Hall will deliver the Sonnenwirth Award Lecture titled, “Developing a Passion in Clinical Microbiology.”

Hall works in the Microbiology Department of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and is medical director at the Cleveland Clinic Medical Technology School. Under Hall’s leadership, the Cleveland Clinic was the first to implement the use of pyrosequencing as a routine method for the identification of clinically important mycobacteria. Hall also played a key role in implementing the routine use of fluorescence in situ hybridization using peptide nucleic acid probes (PNA FISH) for the rapid identification of S. aureus and Candida albicans.

“We are proud to honor such a deserving microbiologist with the bioMérieux Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership,” said Herb Steward, executive vice president and general manager, bioMérieux North America. “Geraldine Hall is a true leader and innovator in microbiology and we know she will continue to positively influence and make valuable contributions to this field of science.”

Published in more than 100 publications, Hall was appointed Professor of Pathology at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University in 2005. She is active in the professional community with membership and leadership positions in various organizations such as the Northeast Ohio Association for Clinical Microbiology, South Central Association for Clinical Microbiologists and the American Society of Microbiology. She received her Ph.D. in Biology with an emphasis on Microbiology from Saint Bonaventure University in N.Y. and is also a certified Diplomate of the American Board of Medical Microbiology and a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.

Hall was nominated by L. Barth Reller, Professor of Medicine and Pathology, Duke University Medical Center, who is also an American Academy of Microbiology Fellow.

A world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics for 45 years, bioMérieux is present in more than 150 countries through 38 subsidiaries and a large network of distributors. In 2007, revenues reached €1.063 billion with 84% of sales outside of France.

bioMérieux provides diagnostic solutions (reagents, instruments, software), which determine the source of disease and contamination to improve patient health and ensure consumer safety. Our products are used for diagnosing infectious diseases and providing high medical value results for cardiovascular emergencies and cancer screening and monitoring. They are also used for detecting microorganisms in agri-food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic products. bioMérieux is listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris market (Code: BIM – Code ISIN: FR0010096479). Other information can be found at www.biomerieux.com.

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