September 18, 2005

Stem cell docs win top award
U.S. prize shocks winners -- research done in 1960s
By SHARON LEM, TORONTO SUN

Two Canadians considered the "fathers of stem cell research" have been awarded America's most prestigious award for medical research -- often a precursor to the Nobel Prize.

Drs. James Till, 74, and Ernest McCulloch, 79, both emeritus professors at the University of Toronto/Ontario Cancer Institute, will receive this year's Lasker Award for basic medical research for their groundbreaking work in the 1960s.

"WHY NOW?"

"It's a great honour, but we're more surprised than excited because it's been so long and we've wondered, 'Why now?' " said Till, a professor emeritus of medical biophysics.

"I hope it will give a boost to stem cell research and attract more talent into the field. All you can do is do the best work you can and hope that it will make a difference to stimulate stem cell research."

The Lasker Awards are America's most distinguished honour for outstanding contributions to basic and clinical medical research. Seventy of the 90 Lasker Award winners have received the Nobel Prize, including 19 in the last 15 years.

Till and McCulloch's ingenious experiments identified the first stem cell. Their work laid the foundation for all current work on adult and embryonic stem cells and transformed the study of blood-cell specialization, leading to breakthroughs in human bone marrow transplantation.

Till and McCulloch were the first to realize that when marrow cells were given to animals who underwent radiation, lumps began to grow and regenerate in the spleen.

INSPIRATION

Without their discovery, stem cell biology and bone marrow transplantation might still be in the dark ages. Until their discovery, the field hadn't progressed for 60 years -- their findings gave scientists inspiration to continue.

The award will be presented in New York City on Friday.