2016- Alpert Prize Recognizes CRISPR Pioneers

michaelgibh

原文链接 ：http://hms.harvard.edu/news/alpe ... mpaign=03.14.16.HMS0 x2 M& L- ^. `& L9 Z$ }
The 2016 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize will be awarded to five scientists for their remarkable contributions to the understanding of the CRISPR bacterial defense system and the revolutionary discovery that it can be adapted for genome editing.+ M1 A+ b2 \) @% g. v. V$ i1 E4 `

) I; |( y) K+ `The recipients are:
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* ^4 b( @, _% B2 IRodolphe Barrangou, associate professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences and the Todd R. Klaenhammer Distinguished Scholar in Probiotics Research at North Carolina State University9 Z6 F" k7 v5 k6 z# c& f
Philippe Horvath, senior scientist at DuPont in Dangé-Saint-Romain, France; d: p& {5 y- k
Jennifer Doudna, the Li Ka Shing Chancellor’s Chair in Biomedical and Health Sciences and professor of molecular and cell biology and of chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley
. _- Q( O' C# R4 A/ U0 lEmmanuelle Charpentier, scientific member and director at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin and professor at Umeå University in Sweden& ?' z: |7 z8 V' D
Virginijus Siksnys, professor, chief scientist and department head at the Institute of Biotechnology at Vilnius University in Lithuania （立陶宛）
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  d7 O. C: E3 {( uBarrangou and Horvath established that bacteria protect themselves from being killed by pathogens, such as viruses, using a system called CRISPR (short for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) to cut up specific segments of the invading viruses’ DNA.
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+ K" k6 p& p, ?% I7 Q' l% NBuilding on their findings, Doudna, Charpentier and Siksnys realized that the system could be programmed to zero in on any desired genetic sequence in a broader array of organisms, including humans, and that this purposeful cutting could be used to alter or replace the targeted DNA at will.
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5 }# x- e! S9 UTogether, these discoveries, which were further refined and expanded by the prize recipients and other researchers, have generated a powerful tool for rapidly determining gene function and have democratized the ability to pursue clinical advances such as correcting genetic defects and designing better drugs by making gene editing faster, easier and cheaper than the technologies available previously.
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“The game-changing insights achieved by these five scientists led to a technique that has been swiftly embraced across the globe, altering the way we study and understand eukaryotic genetics and offering enormous potential for developing new gene- and cell-based therapies, including treatment strategies for previously intractable genetic diseases,” said Jeffrey S. Flier, dean of the faculty of medicine at Harvard Medical School and chair of the Warren Alpert Foundation Prize Scientific Advisory Committee.
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1 M3 L. y; j% K# q  j8 t/ g“Determining biochemically and molecularly how the CRISPR system operates and then demonstrating its potential as a gene editing tool is one of the most important technological advances that has been made during my career,” said Cliff Tabin, head of the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School and a member of the Alpert Foundation’s scientific advisory prize committee.) X$ p. ~- t/ W& o$ w" K! |
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“There are a large number of researchers who have contributed to the development of the CRISPR system and in no small measure share credit for it, but in choosing this year’s Alpert Prize recipients, we recognized those who established the understanding of the system and its potential, which others were then able to perfect as a usable tool,” Tabin added.' S( @3 z5 R) [  H1 g

2 `' C0 A% Z3 F; A( y5 y* ?# w3 \- qThe Warren Alpert Foundation Prize recognizes scientists whose research has led to the prevention, cure or treatment of human diseases or disorders and constitutes a seminal scientific finding that holds great promise for ultimately changing our understanding of, or ability to treat, disease., a/ D# R1 `# T0 z1 e- i, U
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The late Warren Alpert, a philanthropist dedicated to advancing biomedical research, established the prize in 1987. To date, the foundation has awarded more than $3 million to 54 individuals. Eight honorees have also received a Nobel Prize.
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8 o. s9 d3 j2 `6 B$ lThis year’s recipients will share an unrestricted award of $500,000 and will be honored at a symposium at Harvard Medical School on Oct. 6.+ d1 Q, k+ r( _' t, `4 S6 l9 o

" _( R  K' P" N“These five scientists have made foundational contributions to a technique that has hit the field of genetics like a lightning bolt,” said Bevin Kaplan, director and vice president of the Warren Alpert Foundation and a member of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows. “The nature of this work is unprecedented in its far-reaching potential for future therapeutic advances.”
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“We are confident that innumerable lives will be positively touched by this work in the years to come,” Kaplan added. “In this way, these exemplary men and women most definitely embody the spirit of the Warren Alpert Foundation Prize. As always, we anticipate a phenomenal symposium and award ceremony in the fall.”