NEW YORK, NY (October 16, 2013) – The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) today named seven of the most promising scientists as its 2013 NYSCF – Robertson Investigators.
Each Investigator will receive a $1.5 million award, which will be disbursed over the next five years, which will enable them to expand their laboratories and train other scientists. Three of the scientists were named NYSCF – Robertson Stem Cell Investigators, a program in its fourth year, and four were named NYSCF – Robertson Neuroscience Investigators, a program in its third year.
"These young Investigators are on the cutting-edge of high-risk, high-reward research that no one else is doing. We are all honored to support the careers and future investigations of these promising talents," said Susan L. Solomon, Chief Executive Officer of NYSCF.
The latest Investigators were announced at NYSCF's Eighth Annual Translational Stem Cell Research Conference, held at The Rockefeller University in Manhattan.
Designed to support scientists engaged in novel neuroscience and cutting-edge translational stem cell research, the two Investigator programs were created to aid talented researchers as they make the transition from the post doctoral phase of their careers to the establishment of their own laboratories.
The Investigator awards build on the previous success of NYSCF's Postdoctoral Fellowship program, which is the largest program of postdoctoral support for stem cell researchers in the United States, and has provided funding for 40 postdoctoral researchers to date.
Marc Tessier-Lavigne, PhD, President of The Rockefeller University, chaired the NYSCF – Robertson Neuroscience Investigator program's selection committee.
"It was again a very difficult decision to choose the investigators, but we are thrilled to be able to award these talented scientists and support their future work," said Dr. Tessier-Lavigne. "We are looking forward to the groundbreaking discoveries they will make in the field of neuroscience."
Tessier-Lavigne was joined on the jury by Anders Björklund, MD, PhD, Professor of Histology at the Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, University of Lund in Sweden; Catherine Dulac, PhD, Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at Harvard University; and, Lorenz Studer, MD, Director of Sloan-Kettering Center for Stem Cell Biology.
The NYSCF – Robertson Stem Cell Investigator program's selection committee consisted of Fiona Watt, DPhil, from King's College London in the United Kingdom; Lorenz Studer, MD, Director of the Sloan-Kettering Center for Stem Cell Biology; Irving Weissman, MD, Director of the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at the Stanford School of Medicine; and, Pete Coffey, DPhil, Co-Executive Director of Translation UC Santa Barbara's Center for Stem Cell Biology and Engineering and Director of the London Project to Cure Blindness, University College London.
"I'm happy we could select these early career scientists to support their future endeavors. This group has the potential to make new discoveries that may revolutionize our therapeutic approaches to diseases," said Fiona Watt.
The new NYSCF – Robertson Stem Cell Investigators are:
The new NYSCF – Robertson Neuroscience Investigators are:
About The New York Stem Cell Foundation
The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) is an independent research institute founded in 2005 that accelerates cures and better treatments for patients through stem cell research. NYSCF has over 45 researchers in its New York laboratory and is an acknowledged world leader in stem cell research and in developing pioneering stem cell technologies, including the NYSCF Global Stem Cell ArrayTM. Additionally, NYSCF supports another 60 researchers at other leading institutions worldwide through its Innovator Programs, including the NYSCF – Druckenmiller Fellowships and the NYSCF – Robertson Investigator Awards. NYSCF focuses on translational research in a model designed to overcome the barriers that slow discovery and encourage multi-institutional collaboration.
NYSCF researchers have achieved five major discoveries in the field, including: the recent creation of patient-specific bone substitutes from skin cells; the discovery of a clinical cure to prevent transmission of maternal mitochondrial diseases in December 2012; the derivation of the first-ever patient specific embryonic stem cell line (named the #1 Medical Breakthrough of 2011 by Time magazine); the discovery of a new way to reprogram stem cells; and the creation of the first disease model from induced pluripotent stem cells (also named the #1 Medical Breakthrough by Time magazine in 2008).