Orah Platt, MD

Research Overview

Orah Platt's research focuses on sickle cell disease. She has defined the epidemiology of the major complications and has dissected the sickle red-cell membrane in an effort to find new therapeutic strategies.

Recently, in collaboration with Carlos Brugnara, she has demonstrated that the antifungal clotrimazole can block dehydration, and ameliorate sickling of red blood cells. ICA-17043, a drug developed on a metabolite of clotrimazole, has been readied for Phase III trials in treating sickle-cell disease.

About Orah Platt

Orah Platt received her MD degree from Harvard Medical School. She completed an internship and a residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and a fellowship at Children's Hospital Boston.

Dr. Dr. Platt is Master of the William Bosworth Castle Society at Harvard Medical School and has been honored with numerous awards for teaching and mentoring.

Key Publications

• Brugnara C, Zurakowski D, DiCanzio J, Boyd T, Platt O. Reticulocyte hemoglobin content to diagnose iron deficiency in children. Journal of the American Medical Association 1999; 281:2225-3220,
  
  
• Brugnara C, Gee B, Armsby CC, Kurth S, Sakamoto M, Rifai N, Alper SL, Platt OS. Therapy with oral clotrimazole induces inhibition of the Gardos channel and reduction of erythrocyte dehydration in patients with sickle cell disease. Journal of Clinical Investigation. 97: 1227-1234.
  
  
• Platt OS, Orkin SH, Dover G, Beardsley GP, Miller B, Nathan DG. Hydroxyurea enhances fetal hemoglobin production in sickle cell anemia. Journal of Clinical Investigation 1984; 74: 652-656.