Lee C. Howley Sr. Prize for Arthritis Research
The Arthritis Foundation announces the 2008 winners of the Lee C. Howley Sr. Prize for Research in Arthritis. The recipients are Dr. Gerard Karsenty of the Columbia University College of Physicians and Dr. Michel Nussenzweig of Rockefeller University, both in New York. The Howley Prize recognizes those researchers whose contributions during the previous five years have represented a significant advance in the understanding, treatment or prevention of arthritis and rheumatic diseases.
Dr. Karsenty is currently the Paul A. Marks M.D. Professor and Chairman of the Department of Genetics and Development at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City. Dr. Karsenty received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Paris where he began to develop his interest in endocrinology and skeleton biology. He was then a Postdoctoral Fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Benoit de Crombrugghe from 1986 to 1990. Prior to moving to Columbia University in 2006, Dr. Karsenty was a faculty member at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. Dr. Karsenty’s research interests include the transcriptional control of osteoblast differentiation and the genetic bases of the different functions exerted by the skeleton. Karsenty's contributions to our understanding of the development and function of the skeletal system have been nothing short of remarkable. To put it succinctly, Karsenty has singlehandedly transformed this field. Prior to Karsenty’s work, little was known about the molecular basis of mammalian skeletal system development and differentiation. Now, a decade later, the field is burgeoning with a plethora of new transcription factors, coactivators, corepressors, and signaling pathways that explain the development of the osteoblast from the mesenchymal stem cell, both during embryonic development and during postnatal bone formation.
Dr Nussenzweig obtained his Ph.D. working with Dr. Ralph Steinman on the role of newly discovered dendritic cells in initiating.gif)
immunity. After completing a medical internship, and residency, and infectious disease fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital he joined Dr. Philip Leder in the department of genetics at Harvard Medical School for postdoctoral training. He returned to Rockefeller University in 1990 as an assistant professor and Howard Hughes Investigator to head an independent laboratory. He was promoted to professor in 1996 and named Sherman Fairchild Professor in 2000. Dr. Nussenzweig heads the laboratory of Molecular Immunology at The Rockefeller University. Nussenzweig's contributions to the fields of B cell development and dendritic cell function have provided important insights into the etiology of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and have paved the way to the development of novel therapies for the treatment of these diseases.
The Arthritis Foundation extends its gratitude to the Howley family on behalf of the estimated 46 million Americans who have arthritis for making the Lee C. Howley Sr. Prize for Research in Arthritis possible. The recognition that this program offers for excellence in arthritis research will ensure that the search will continue for cures to the more than 100 forms of arthritis and the rheumatic diseases. The Howley family's expression of commitment offers hope that one day the problems of arthritis will be solved.
