Silicon Valley Tycoons Bestow Surprise $33 Million Prize On 11 Unsuspecting Cancer Researchers
Telomere Caps Wikimedia CommonsBecause "curing a disease should be worth more than a touchdown." Cori Bargmann's research at the Rockefeller University has shown nematode worms, one of the simplest lab animals in biology, exhibit surprisingly complex behavior when faced with new challenges. She studies the neural connections that encode those responses. Her Rockefeller colleague Titia de Lange studies mammalian telomeres, the protective caps on the end of our chromosomes whose degradation contributes to aging. She investigates how loss of telomeres can lead to genomic instability in cancer. Both researchers are incredibly distinguished scientists, recipients of numerous honors and awards in their fields. Now they can add another line to their resumes: They are the only women among 20 people thus far to be honored with a lucrative new science prize. The newest one, the $3 million Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, was announced Wednesday. It honors 11 scientists from four...