Dr. Richard Kolodner Awarded the Kirk A. Landon – American Association for Cancer Research Award at AACR Annual Meeting
Dr. Richard D. Kolodner
Dr. Richard D. Kolodner, LICR’s Executive Director for Laboratory and Translational Sciences and Member, San Diego Branch, has been awarded the 2007 Kirk A. Landon - AACR Prize for Basic Cancer Research. Dr. Kolodner received the award at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in Anaheim, CA, in recognition of his pioneering discoveries in the field of DNA mismatch repair and its connection to cancer.
Dr. Kolodner was the first to demonstrate the vital role of DNA mismatch repair genes, which are responsible for the repair of genetic errors that may destabilize DNA, in suppressing cancer. His innovative use of a combination of bacterial, yeast and human genomic approaches led to the discovery of the Msh2 gene, which was mapped to the 2p locus relating to hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer (HNPCC), thereby correlating the mutation of this mismatch repair gene with familial cancer. Recognition of other mismatch repair genes, including Mlh1 and Msh6, was soon to follow. These defining discoveries have served as the foundation for a multitude of studies on both inherited and sporadic cancers, and ultimately elucidated the molecular basis for the development of certain cancers.
Dr. Kolodner has received numerous awards and distinguished honors including a National Institutes of Health MERIT Award, the Charles S. Mott Prize from the General Motors Cancer Research Foundation and The Mutation Research Award for Scientific Excellence. He has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences and serves on numerous advisory and review boards including the National Cancer Institute Board of Scientific Councilors and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Scientific Review Board. He is also an Associate Editor of Cell and serves on the editorial boards of the journals Cellular and Molecular Biology and DNA Repair.
The Kirk A. Landon – AACR Prize for Basic Cancer Research was established in 2002 with the purposes of recognizing individual investigators who have contributed landmark scientific achievements in the prevention and treatment of cancer; elevating the awareness of other scientists and the general public of these accomplishments; and inspiring other cancer researchers to think creatively about the complexities of this disease. Dr. Kolodner is the sixth recipient of this prestigious award since it was established, in 2002, by the Kirk A. and Dorothy P. Landon Foundation and the AACR.