Salk Institute announces $6 million gift from Irwin and Joan Jacobs to create The Renato Dulbecco Chair in Genomics and The Roger Guillemin Chair in Neuroscience

November 29, 2010

Salk Institute announces $6 million gift from Irwin and Joan Jacobs to create The Renato Dulbecco Chair in Genomics and The Roger Guillemin Chair in Neuroscience

November 29, 2010

LA JOLLA, CA—The Salk Institute for Biological Studies today announced the establishment of the Renato Dulbecco Chair in Genomics and the Roger Guillemin Chair in Neuroscience based on an endowment of $6 million from Irwin Jacobs, chairman of the Salk’s Board of Trustees, and his wife Joan Klein Jacobs.

“The creation of each chair will pay permanent tribute to the extraordinary research contributions of these two remarkable scientists,” said Salk President William R. Brody. “The central roles played by Dr. Dulbecco in genomics and Dr. Guillemin in neuroscience have built a legacy of leadership and innovation that will remain embedded in the Institute now and for years to come.”

Renato Dulbecco, M.D., a Founding Fellow of the Salk Institute and President Emeritus, conducted seminal research that provided the first clue to the genetic nature of cancer. He was jointly awarded the 1975 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discoveries concerning the interaction between tumor viruses and the genetic material of the cell. In his studies, he described how a virus could insert its own genes into the chromosome of the cell it infects and “turn on” the uncontrolled growth that is the hallmark of cancer. This was the first solid evidence that cancer originates when a cell’s genes become mutated, or co-opted, and the breakthrough transformed the way researchers viewed cancer. In 1986, Dulbecco initiated the idea of studying all human genes, helping to launch the worldwide Human Genome Project.

Dr. Dulbecco is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Lasker Award and those given by the National Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society of London and the Academia Del Lincei of Italy. To highlight his achievements, the Salk Institute established the Dulbecco Laboratories for Cancer Research in 2005.

罗杰·吉耶曼, M.D., Ph.D., a distinguished professor and former president of the Salk Institute, won the Nobel Prize in 1977 for discoveries that laid the foundation for brain hormone research. Considered the founder of the field of neuroendocrinology, Guillemin is a scientific pioneer whose work has led to treatments for disorders ranging from infertility to diabetes to pituitary tumors. He discovered an entirely new class of substances that regulate growth, development, reproduction and responses to stress. His discoveries also advanced the study and treatment of a variety of diseases and disorders, including thyroid diseases, infertility, diabetes and several types of tumors.

The beneficiary of countless honors in addition to the Nobel Prize, Guillemin is also a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has received the Lasker Award and the National Medal of Science, among many others. The Institute for Scientific Information lists him as one of the most “highly cited” scientists from 1981-99.

In addition to their profound scientific achievements, Dr. Dulbecco and Dr. Guillemin have each served in leadership roles at the Salk Institute. Dr. Dulbecco was president of the Salk Institute from 1989 to 1992, and Dr. Guillemin served as Interim President from 2007 to 2009.

“Joan and I are particularly pleased to establish these chairs to recognize our two resident Nobel Prize winners, Drs. Dulbecco and Guillemin, for their incredible achievements in science and research, for the leadership they have provided over the years at Salk, and for the legions of scientists they continue to mentor and inspire,” said Jacobs.

Joanne Chory, Ph.D., Salk Faculty Chair and holder of the Howard H. and Maryam R. Newman Chair said that the Institute is deeply honored by the couple’s generous gift. “Renato and Roger are held in great esteem by their Salk colleagues and their former students. We are indebted to the Jacobs’ wonderful generosity in creating these chairs to honor these two extraordinary scientists for their pioneering research and their leadership as former presidents of the Salk Institute.”

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。.

索尔克研究所为基础研究领域的卓越科学成就而自豪地庆祝了五十周年。.