The Pfizer Research Prize, endowed with a total of CHF 105,000, was awarded on February 7, 2013 in Zurich to nine outstanding papers in basic and clinical research in various fields.
Since 1992, the Pfizer Research Prize has been awarded annually to work by young researchers whose findings are advancing developments in medicine. A total of 237 scientists have already been honored in this way over the course of time.
This year’s award-winning research was conducted at institutions and hospitals in Lausanne, Geneva, Bern, Basel, Lucerne and Zurich and was selected by an independent scientific committee at the request of the Pfizer Research Prize Foundation.
The event was welcomed by Dr. jur. Thomas Heiniger, member of the cantonal government and health director of the canton of Zurich, in front of around 200 guests from politics, business and medicine. He attributed great importance to the prize for medicine and Zurich as a center of science. “Please stay curious,” was his wish for the young award winners, because curiosity is the source of all knowledge. The winning entries had in common that they stood out among the 38 submitted and are not only the testimony of scientific curiosity, but also the result of hard work, perseverance and close teamwork.
Outstanding work from Switzerland
This year, the prize went to four female scientists and five male scientists. In the field of cardiovascular, urology and nephrology, Dr. Amélie Sabine was honored together with Prof. Tatiana V. Petrova for their new findings on the formation and maintenance of lymphatic valves, and Dr. Stefano Rimoldi from Inselspital in Bern received the award for his work on the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in so-called test-tube babies. His findings show that artificial insemination can lead to a general disruption of vascular function, which later translates into an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
Dr. Weldy V. Bonilla from the University of Geneva researched why killer T cells are specifically activated during a viral infection: It is not so much the strange appearance of the viruses, but rather the release of interleukin-33 that drives the killer T cells to peak performance in the body’s defense. She was awarded the Pfizer Research Prize in Infectious Diseases, Rheumatology and Immunology.
In the field of neuroscience and diseases of the nervous system, Dr. Dario Cazzoli and Dr. Thomas Nyffeler were honored for their work, which should give hope to many stroke patients. The result of their research shows that thetaburst stimulation helps patients regain independence quickly after a stroke. The fact that the cerebral cortex is crucially involved in emotional learning is the result of research by Dr. Johannes J. Letzkus, who thus joins the list of award winners.
In oncology, the committee chose the research of Olga Shakhova, M.D., who identified the Sox10 control gene, which is important for cell division, in melanoma. Thus, tumors could be treated by suppressing Sox10. Last but not least, Dr. Albert Santamaria Martinez, also in oncology, accepted his award.
Source: Pfizer Research Prize, February 7, 2013, Zurich
