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From Messy Glob to Driving Force: How Understanding DNA Revolutionized Biology
MARCH 9, 2021
Read about the scientists who elucidated the secrets of the double helix.
Paul Nurse: Studying Yeast to Crack the Code of the Cell Cycle
MARCH 9, 2021
Fascinated by nature, Nurse, a self-described 'experimentalist', pursued a career path dedicated to understanding the control of cell division despite "long periods of drudgery."
Emil Unanue: Explaining the Key Role of Macrophages in Fighting Pathogens
NOV. 11, 2020
Despite collegial skepticism, Unanue's highly original studies fundamentally advanced the field of molecular immunology and revealed the biochemical basis of T cell recognition.
75 Years of Lasker Awards that Recognize Advances in Infectious Disease
SEPT. 25, 2020
Celebrating advances in infectious disease research that have been honored with Laskers over the last 75 years.
Barbara McClintock: A-“maizing” Insights about Jumping Genes
SEPT. 25, 2020
Read about the revolutionary genetic discoveries that challenged established concepts.
Leroy Hood: Leading the Systems Biology Revolution
JUNE 8, 2020
A pioneer of systems biology, Hood is dedicated to developing new technologies and approaches to tackle complex biological questions.
Solomon Snyder: Defining How the Brain Responds to Opioids
JUNE 8, 2020
Snyder’s discovery of opiate receptors opened the field of neurotransmitter-synaptic interactions.
An Interview with Nancy Wexler
JUNE 7, 2020
In these three final chapters, Wexler discusses the ethical implications of genetic research, her experience winning the 1993 Lasker Award, and the future of Huntington’s disease research.
James P. Allison: Crusading for Cancer Immunotherapy
MAY 6, 2020
Allison shares how his early-career fascination with T-cell behavior eventually led to monoclonal antibody therapy for melanoma, a fundamentally new strategy for treating cancer.
Stanley N. Cohen: Transforming Molecular Biology
MAY 6, 2020
Cohen’s quest to understand how bacteria share genes laid a foundation for recombinant DNA technology and helped expand the biological promise of genetic engineering.
Alfred Sommer: Discovering a Two-Cent Remedy that Saves Children’s Lives
APRIL 6, 2020
Using a data-driven approach, Alfred Sommer convinced the world of the importance of vitamin A for public health.
Evelyn Witkin: Pursuing the Mysteries of DNA Damage
APRIL 6, 2020
Renowned geneticist Evelyn Witkin discusses how enthusiasm, luck, and a little defiance helped shape her career.
Phillip Sharp: Translating Insights about RNA Splicing into Therapeutics
APRIL 6, 2020
Sharp's discoveries revealed how genetic information is processed at the RNA level.
Eric Kandel: Learning about the Human Brain from Sea Slugs
MARCH 10, 2020
Kandel discusses how studying an unusual model organism helped reveal mechanisms underlying learning and memory.
J. Michael Bishop and Harold Varmus: Partnering to Uncover Human Cancer-Causing Genes
MARCH 10, 2020
Bishop and Varmus share their personal and professional journeys that led to the discovery that oncogenes are present in normal cells.
How Butterfly Nets Helped Joseph Gall Transform Modern Cell Biology
DEC. 5, 2017
Lasker Laureate Joseph Gall, the founder of modern cell biology, reveals some of the secrets behind his success.
In Utero Gene Therapy
DEC. 4, 2017
Lasker Laureate Yuet Wai Kan discusses major challenges in the development of novel therapies employing stem cells for the treatment of sickle cell disease and thalassemia.
Neufeld’s Advice to Young Scientists: Be the Best You Can Be
JULY 12, 2017
Lasker Laureate Elizabeth Neufeld on being a woman in academia in the late 1940s and early 1950s, her advice to young scientists today, and what getting a Lasker Award meant to her.
Leroy Hood: There Is Going to Be a Fantastic Revolution in Medicine
APRIL 10, 2017
Leroy Hood, Lasker laureate and president and co-founder of the Institute for Systems Biology, discusses how systems medicine could revolutionize current medical care.
Susumu Tonegawa on Heading World-Class Brain Research Institutes
APRIL 10, 2017
Susumu Tonegawa, Lasker laureate, director of the RIKEN Brain Science Institute in Japan, and former director of MIT’s Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, shares his thoughts on what makes the RIKEN Institute special and why collaboration occurs naturally at the Picower Institute.
