Honored as “Father of the Field” for Gut Microbiome Research
Jeffrey Gordon, MD, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, received the Paul Jansen, Ph.D. Award for Biomedical Research for outstanding contributions to the field of gut microbiome research.
Distinguished University Professors Jeffrey I. Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., Robert J. Glaser, Ph.D., of the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and Director of the Edison Family Center for Genomic Sciences and Systems Biology, has been named this year’s Ph.D. I was. The Paul Jansen Award for Biomedical Research. This honor recognizes Gordon’s groundbreaking work on the role of the gut microbiota in human health and disease.
The award, presented annually by Johnson & Johnson, recognizes “the most passionate and creative scientist or group of scientists in basic or clinical research whose work has had a measurable impact on human health.” , or likely to give”. Multiple winners of this award have won Nobel Prizes.
Gordon will receive the award on February 9 during an event that includes a virtual symposium titled “Therapeutic Potential of the Microbiome: Dr. Paul Jansen Award Symposium.”
The award honors the legacy of Dr. Paul Jansen, a prolific and innovative pharmaceutical researcher who has contributed to the discovery and development of more than 80 medicines. Janssen’s discoveries have had a profound impact on multiple areas of biomedicine, including psychiatry, infectious diseases, gastroenterology, and pain management. His professional legacy continues in Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies.
Founded by Gordon, the field of human microbiome research is experiencing explosive growth, judging by the number of publications and microbiome programs created by universities, pharmaceutical companies, biotech companies, and philanthropic organizations. .
“The microbiome offers exciting new opportunities for identifying disease mechanisms, identifying therapeutic targets, and discovering new therapeutics,” said Gordon. “Research in this area transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries to advance our understanding of how human physiology is shaped by microbial communities and to explore the contribution of microbes to non-communicable diseases. It’s changing my understanding.”
Gordon collaborated with Tahmeed Ahmed (MBBS, PhD), Executive Director of the International Diarrhea Research Center (icddr,b), Bangladesh, and his group studying the role of the gut microbiome in child malnutrition. We have been working together for many years. Together, their research is a novel microbiome-oriented approach to combat childhood malnutrition, a multifaceted and pressing global health problem exacerbated by climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and geopolitical turmoil. leading to the development of therapeutics.
“The gut microbiome is very much a reflection of our different ways of life, the gradients of wealth and poverty, access to resources that exist today, and the health disparities that we must recognize, address, and overcome. ,” Gordon said. “To see the members of the University of Washington-icddr,b team embrace the global health problem of malnutrition in a way that demonstrates hope, dedication, courage, creativity, self-sacrifice and an enduring commitment to innovation. I am encouraged and hopeful for the future, for our children and grandchildren.”
Gordon has mentored 144 talented PhD students and postdoctoral researchers since the lab was founded.
“The talented staff and students I have had the pleasure of working with have developed a great sense of community. It’s a shared belief that comes from a supportive environment and that you can share ideas freely, while at the same time don’t be afraid to say ‘I don’t know’ so we can learn together,” Gordon said.
Click this link to register for the Dr. Paul Jansen Awards virtual symposium and talk, “Therapeutic Promise of the Microbiome.”
