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Nobel Prize:
Mario Renato Capecchi, distinguished professor of biology and distinguished professor of human genetics and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, has won the 2007 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
The announcement was made Monday, Oct. 8, by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
The prize recognizes Capecchi’s pioneering development of “knockout mice” technology,
a gene-targeting technique that has revolutionized the study of mammalian biology and allowed the
creation of animal models for hundreds of human diseases, including the modeling of cancers in the mouse.
“Gene targeting in mice has pervaded all fields of biomedicine. Its impact on the understanding of gene
function and its benefits to mankind will continue to increase over many years to come,” said the Nobel committee.
Capecchi shares the prize with Oliver Smithies, D.Phil., at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Sir Martin Evans, Ph.D., at Cardiff University, Wales.
Capecchi’s development of gene targeting in mouse embryo-derived stem cells allows investigators to create mice with mutations in any desired gene and gives them virtually complete freedom to manipulate the DNA sequences in the genome of living mice.
The technology not only has made possible the production of animal models for human disease, but it also is providing Capecchi and other researchers with insights into understanding fundamental biological questions, including development of the brain in the embryo or its function in the adult.
The Nobel Prize tops a long list of awards and recognitions for Capecchi, including the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, the Wolf Prize in Medicine, Israel’s highest award for medical science, the Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences, and the National Medal of Science. Capecchi also was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1991 and the European Academy of Sciences in 2002.
Capecchi started his career at the University of Utah in 1973, when he was hired as a full professor of biology in the College of Science. He established a research lab in the biology department and by 1977 had proven homologous recombination generated an ordered array of newly introduced DNA molecules in recipient cells. By 1989, he had developed the first mouse model with targeted genetic mutations.
Panofsky Prize in Particle Physics:
To recognize and encourage outstanding achievements in Experimental Particle Physics. The prize consists of $10,000, an allowance for travel to the meeting at which the prize is to be awarded, and a certificate citing the contributions made by the recipient. It is presented annually.
Establishment & Support
The prize was established in 1985 by friends of W. K. H. Panofsky and the Division of Particles and Fields.
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