Whitehead Member Rudolf Jaenisch awarded Ernst Schering Prize

CAMBRIDGE, Mass – Whitehead Member Rudolf Jaenisch received today the 2009 Ernst Schering Prize, one of the most prestigious German awards for scientists.

“The Schering Prize came as a big surprise,” says Jaenisch. “The Prize has gone to people who have done interesting work, and I am honored to be a recipient.”

According to the Ernst Schering Foundation, which confers the prize, Jaenisch is being honored for his “groundbreaking work in the field of transgenic animal models and therapeutic cloning.”

Jaenisch’s lab has remained at the forefront of cloning and stem cell research, most recently focusing on adult cells that have been reprogrammed to an embryonic stem-cell-like state, called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. These cells are of particular interest as they may have therapeutic potential for a number of diseases, including Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

As part of the Prize, Jaenisch will receive a 50,000 Euro honorarium from the Ernst Schering Foundation.

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Rudolf Jaenisch’s primary affiliation is with Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, where his laboratory is located and all his research is conducted. He is also a professor of biology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

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