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research achievements |
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Research achievements
Whitehead research has illuminated important problems
in biomedicine and changed the landscape of contemporary
biology.
Institute scientists initially focused on human genetics,
cancer, heart disease, AIDS, immunology and developmental
biology. Whitehead was the core institution for one
of the six original National Cooperative Vaccine Development
Groups for AIDS (established by the National Institutes
of Health to speed the development of an AIDS vaccine).
By the mid-1990s, Whitehead had also emerged as a major
center for the newly organized U.S. Human Genome project
(see Center for
Genome Research for details). In recent years, Institute
scientists have been recognized for their research on
stem cells, protein folding, the Y chromosome, RNA and
more. Some of their achievements are listed in our timeline
and below.
Selected achievements:
Cancer
Discovered a compound that kills breast cancer stem cells in mice (Weinberg)
Pinpointed a cellular pathway that prevents cancer response to dietary restriction (Sabatini)
Identified a cellular transition that may create cancer stem cells and cause metastasis (Weinberg)
Identified critical steps in the progression from healthy breast tissue to breast cancer (Weinberg)
Isolated the first tumor suppressor gene, the retinoblastoma gene, and created the first genetically defined human cancer cells (Weinberg)
Genetics and genomics
Linked Y chromosome’s “Achilles’ heel to sex disorders (Page)
Developed a method for genetically engineering salt and drought tolerant plants (Fink)
Developed the first transgenic mouse model of a severe human genetic disease, as well as the first mouse clone carrying an inserted gene (Jaenisch)
Developed the first comprehensive cellular network describing how the yeast genome produces life (Young)
Isolated key genes involved in diabetes, hypertension, leukemia, and obesity (Lodish)
Engineered yeast that speeds ethanol production (Fink)
Mapped and cloned the male-determining Y chromosome, revealing a unique self-repair mechanism that allows the Y to protect some of its most important genes ( Page)
Pioneered the automation and informatics strategies for DNA sequencing and contributed one-third of all human genome sequence assembled by the Human Genome Project (Lander)
Immune system
Created a technique that gives snapshots of the immune system’s defenses (Ploegh)
Discovered new ways to fight stubborn fungal diseases (Fink)
Reported a new mechanism by which dendritic cells sense the presence of antigens and instruct the immune response (Ploegh)
Created novel approaches to the development of cancer, HIV, and tuberculosis vaccines (Young)
Nervous system development and function
Suggested possible treatment for Rett syndrome (Jaenisch)
Identified process that actively shapes a conserved and crucial early fold in the brain (Sive)
Revealed connection between genetic and environmental causes of Parkinson's disease (Lindquist)
Used induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells to treat Parkinson’s disease in mice (Jaenisch)
Identified more than 50 genes in frogs involved in the formation of nerve tissue, paving the way for new strategies to repair damaged nerve cells in humans (Sive)
Repaired a biological pathway and restored normal neurological function in certain animal models of Parkinson’s symptoms (Lindquist)
Discovered proteins in fruit flies that ensure proper partitioning of hereditary material, leading to new understanding of Down's syndrome and other common genetic diseases (Orr-Weaver)
Protein function
Conducted first large-scale study to quantify microRNAs' influences on protein production (Bartel)
Provided definitive evidence for protein-only inheritance (Lindquist)
Found that microRNAs affect most human protein-coding genes (Bartel)
Identified mechanisms by which prions propagate, work that is relevant for understanding conditions such as mad cow disease (Lindquist)
Stem cells and therapeutic cloning
Produced Parkinson’s disease patient-specific stem cells (Jaenisch)
Identified a cellular transition that may be used to create stem cells (Weinberg)
Multiplied human blood stem cells 20-fold in culture (Lodish)
Used induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells to treat sickle-cell anemia and Parkinson’s disease in mice (Jaenisch)
Identified gene that regulates head or tail decision in regenerating flatworms (Reddien)
Used therapeutic cloning to correct immune deficiency in mice (Jaenisch)
Last updated December 16, 2009. |
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