Scientist Who Discovered Origin of Cervical Cancer to be Honored at Thomas Jefferson University
Nobel Prize winner Harald zur Hausen, M.D., will be awarded the 2010 Lennox K. Black International Prize for Excellence in Biomedical Research at a special symposium at 2 p.m., Monday, November 15, 2010 at Thomas Jefferson University.
Dr. zur Hausen is the 2008 winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discovery of the role of papilloma viruses in development of cervical cancer.
The prize is awarded every two years to recognize the impact of pioneering biomedical research on the alleviation of human disease and suffering. Another goal is to draw the international scientific research community together in recognition of the ability of the spirit of human inquiry to transcend national boundaries and divisions.
In 1976, Dr. zur Hausen published his theory that human papilloma virus (HPV) plays an important role in the development of cervical cancer, and in 1983 and 1984, he and his colleagues identified HPV16 and HPV 18 as the causal strains. Based on his pioneering work, a vaccine to protect against HPV is now available.
The award to Dr. zur Hausen will be part of the 6th Symposium in Advances and Challenges in Infectious Disease, and Dr. zur Hausen will also deliver a keynote address. There will also be five other sessions discussing infectious diseases, including biological response to infections, global issues related to infections, and continuing challenges of infection in clinical medicine.
Researchers from across the nation, including scientists from Thomas Jefferson University, Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Duke University Medical Center, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Massachusetts, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and other institutions, will be participating.
In addition to these sessions there will be poster presentations chosen from submitted abstracts on all aspects of Advances and Challenges in Infectious Disease. Students selected to present will be invited to join Dr. zur Hausen at a luncheon to honor his work and to promote graduate education.
Harald zur Hausen was born on March 11, 1936 in Gelsenkirchen-Buer, Germany. He studied Medicine at the Universities of Bonn, Hamburg and Düsseldorf and received his M.D. in 1960. After his internship he worked as postdoctoral fellow at the Institute of Microbiology in Düsseldorf, and then in the Virus Laboratories at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia where he was later appointed as assistant professor.
After a period of three years as a senior scientist at the Institute of Virology of the University of Würzburg, he was appointed in 1972 as chairman and professor of Virology at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg. In 1977 he moved to a similar position at the University of Freiburg. From 1983 until 2003 he was appointed scientific director of the Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum (German Cancer Research Center) in Heidelberg. He retired from this position in 2003.
The Lennox K. Black Symposium will be held on November 15 and 16, 2010 in the Bluemle Life Sciences building on the Jefferson Campus.
Media Only Contact:
Jackie Kozloski
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
Phone: (215) 955-6300
Published: 11/8/2010