The Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation announced on September 8 that Kazutoshi Mori, Professor of Biophysics at Kyoto University's Graduate School of Science, won the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award together with Peter Walter, Professor of the University of California, San Francisco.
Profs. Mori and Walter shared the award for their "discoveries concerning the unfolded protein response -- an intracellular quality-control system that detects harmful misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum and signals the nucleus to carry out corrective measures." Profs. Mori and Walter identified core components of this process and unveiled unexpected aspects of its mechanism.
The Lasker Awards, often dubbed "America's Nobels" as 86 out of 363 Lasker laureates have received the Nobel Prize since the awards' inception in 1945, recognize the contributions of scientists, physicians, and public servants who have made major advances in the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, cure, and prevention of human disease.
Japan now has seven Lasker laureates. Five of them are Kyoto University alumni and/or faculty members: Mori himself, Shinya Yamanaka (awarded 2009), Yoshio Masui (1998), Yasutomi Nishizuka (1989) and Susumu Tonegawa (1987). Yamanaka and Tonegawa also won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2012 and 1987, respectively.
"It is my great pleasure and honor to receive the Lasker Award, the most prestigious American award in medicine. I started these basic studies 25 years ago with yeast at a time of substantial developments in protein research worldwide," said Prof. Mori, reflecting on the scientific endeavor he has long pursued. "I am heartily grateful to all my mentors, colleagues and collaborators for their guidance and efforts to gain a globally competitive edge in the field. Without them, I would not be where I am today."
"I will continue doing my best to expand the frontiers of research into the unfolded protein response. It is my fervent hope that these efforts will raise awareness of the importance of fundamental science and the continuing need to support such studies."
This year's award ceremony will take place on September 19 at The Pierre Hotel in New York City.
From left: Kyoto University Executive Vice-President Hidetoshi Kotera, President Hiroshi Matsumoto, Prof. Kazutoshi Mori, Executive Vice-President Kiyoshi Yoshikawa
Related links
- Kazutoshi Mori lab
http://www.upr.biophys.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/ - Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University
http://www.sci.kyoto-u.ac.jp/modules/tinycontent11/ - Peter Walter lab
http://walterlab.ucsf.edu/ - Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation
http://www.laskerfoundation.org/
