Dr. Ary Sergio Ramoa

Dr. Ary Sergio Ramoa, 51, of Richmond, died Friday, July 1, 2005. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he received his M.D. degree from the State University of Rio de Janeiro in 1978. In 1981, he received a Master of Science degree from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, followed by the receipt of a Ph.D. in physiological optics at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Ramoa received postdoctoral training at Stanford, the University of Maryland, Yale University and MIT before joining the faculty at the Medical College of Virginia Campus of Virginia Commonwealth University in 1993. Dr. Ramoa attained the rank of Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology at VCU in 2002. Dr. Ramoa was a nationally and internationally recognized authority in the visual system, publishing over 50 papers and chapters in this area. For his research, Dr. Ramoa received multiple awards, including an NIH Fogarty Fellowship, the Elizabeth Einstein Award in Neuroscience, and VCU School of Medicine's Outstanding Research Achievement Award. Dr. Ramoa is survived by his wife, Teresinha Ramoa; one daughter, Carolina Ramoa; and a son, Sergio Ramoa. A memorial service will be held for Dr. Ramoa at 3 p.m. on Thursday, July 7, at the MCV Alumni House, located at the Medical Campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.