Geoffrey Wahl elected to Academy of Arts and Sciences class of 2014 for outstanding scientific work

April 29, 2014

Geoffrey Wahl elected to Academy of Arts and Sciences class of 2014 for outstanding scientific work

April 29, 2014

LA JOLLA—The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) elected Salk Professor 杰弗里·M·瓦尔 to its society, whose ranks include Nobel laureates, Pulitzer Prize recipients and Oscar winners, as well intellectual luminaries such as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein. Wahl joins 13 other Salk professors as members into the prestigious AAAS.

Wahl seeks to determine how cancers originate and progress, and why tumors become resistant to even the most powerful anti-cancer drugs. His goal is to translate the knowledge and understanding gained from basic research into the development of new treatment strategies to more effectively manage all types of cancer. As one example of his contribution, Wahl’s team reported the first identification, isolation and characterization of mouse fetal mammary stem cells and their associated gene expression profiles. Wahl and his group are striving to translate these studies to the clinic to help patients with breast cancers that currently lack targeted therapeutic strategies.

“It has been my privilege to call Geoff a colleague and a dear friend. His work in understanding cancer has been critical to the field and he is highly deserving of this honor,” says Inder M. Verma, a Salk professor in the 遗传实验室 and American Cancer Society Professor of Molecular Biology who, along with Carol Prives, a professor at Columbia University, nominated Wahl for inclusion into the academy. Both Verma and Prives are members of the society.

“I am humbled by the honor and privilege of being included as a member of this Academy and deeply grateful to those who nominated and supported me,” says Wahl, a professor in Salk’s 基因表达实验室 and holder of the Daniel and Martina Lewis Chair. “I have been fortunate to work with students, postdoctoral scholars and collaborators whose efforts, insights, and intellect were vital to my work.”

The academy is one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious honorary learned societies, and a leading center for independent policy research. Among its more than 4,600 members and 600 foreign fellows are some of the world’s most accomplished leaders from academia, business, social policy, energy, global security, the humanities and the arts. The current membership includes more than 250 Nobel laureates and more than 60 Pulitzer Prize winners. The 204 new members were announced this month.

关于索尔克生物研究所：
索尔克生物研究所是世界顶尖的基础研究机构之一，其国际知名的教职人员在一个独特、协作和富有创造性的环境中，深入探究生命科学的基本问题。索尔克科学家们致力于发现和指导未来几代研究人员，通过研究神经科学、遗传学、细胞和植物生物学以及相关学科，在癌症、衰老、阿尔茨海默氏症、糖尿病和传染病的认识方面做出了开创性的贡献。.

学院取得了许多成就，获得了包括诺贝尔奖和美国国家科学院院士在内的无数荣誉。该研究所由脊髓灰质炎疫苗先驱 Jonas Salk 博士于 1960 年创立，是一家独立的非营利组织和建筑地标。.