Shaw Prize In Life Sciences To Lefkowitz

ROBERT J. LEFKOWITZ, James B. Duke Professor of Medicine and professor of biochemistry at Duke University Medical Center, has been awarded the $1 million Shaw Prize in Life Science & Medicine "for his relentless elucidation of the major receptor system that mediates the response of cells and organs to drugs and hormones."

Lefkowitz' research has led to greater understanding of a family of proteins called G-protein-coupled receptors. In 1982, he identified the gene for the β-adrenergic receptor, and shortly thereafter, he discovered seven additional adrenergic receptors. Lefkowitz also discovered two new families of proteins that desensitize G-protein-coupled receptors. This finding has helped scientists understand how receptors become tolerant of certain drugs.

Lefkowitz is among four winners of the 2007 Shaw Prize, awarded by the Hong Kong-based Shaw Prize Foundation to honor individuals who have achieved significant breakthroughs in academic and scientific research or application and whose work has had a positive and profound impact on humankind. It is awarded annually in three categories: astronomy, life sciences and medicine, and mathematical sciences. The prizes will be presented in September during a ceremony in Hong Kong.