It is a pairing of two of the brightest minds in modern science. On October 20th at a free symposium at UBC, Vancouverites will have a chance to hear from Nobel Laureate Dr. Sydney Brenner, and Dr. Linda Buck, both Gairdner Award recipients.
Drs. Brenner and Buck will speak as part of the Gairdner Foundation’s Minds that Matter Symposium. Dr. Brenner, a professor of the Salk Institute in San Diego, will talk on “From Genes to Organisms,” while Dr. Buck, a scientist with the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Seattle and a Howard Hughes Institute investigator will present on “Mechanisms Underlying the Sense of Smell.”
The Gairdner Foundation bestows annual awards for scientific excellence to scientists from around the world. Since 1959, Gairdner awards have been presented to 264 scientists, 59 of whom have gone on to receive the Nobel Prize.
“The Gairdner Foundation’s annual symposium helps to increase public awareness and understanding of the importance of scientific research,” says Dr. Victor Ling, vice-president of research, BC Cancer Agency, and a 1990 Gairdner award recipient. “We are very pleased to be one of 12 cities hosting this symposium, and to have two such distinguished speakers.”
In 2002, Dr. Brenner received the Nobel prize for his research on C. elegans (a microscopic roundworm). Dr. Brenner established C. elegans as an experimental model, which could be used to study cell division and differentiation. C. elegans is a structurally simple organism, but it shares many of the biological characteristics common to all animals, including humans. Much of what is learned from C. elgans can be directly transferred to human biology, hence its value to researchers.
“Dr. Brenner’s landmark contribution has major implications for cancer research, since cancer is fundamentally uncontrolled cell division,” says Dr. Ling. “At the BC Cancer Agency, a number of researchers are using the fundamental knowledge derived from C. elegans research to decipher molecular pathways critical to cancer development and progression.”
Dr. Buck made a groundbreaking discovery in how humans and mammals detect and perceive thousands of odours. She discovered the molecular basis of smell: a multi-gene family that encodes 1,000 different olfactory receptors in the nose and documented how these receptors transfer olfactory signals to the brain to generate diverse odour perceptions.
“Smell is one of our most evocative senses, and olfactory signals are capable of evoking strong emotions and memories,” says Max Cynader, Director of the Brain Research Centre at UBC. “Linda Buck has revolutionized our understanding of the sense of smell. She has played a key role in identifying the different classes of receptors for smell and is in the process of sorting out how these different receptors connect to form a ‘smell map’ within the brain.”
The event is sponsored by the BC Cancer Agency, UBC, Genome British Columbia, the Brain Research Centre at UBC, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
The symposium will be held October 20 from 4 to 6 p.m. at UBC’s Hebb Theatre. The event is free, however seating is on a first-come basis. For more information, please visit www.bccancer.bc.ca
For more information about the Gairdner awards or for a profile of Dr. Buck, please visit the Gairdner Foundation website at www.gairdner.org A profile of Dr. Brenner can be found at www.nobel.se/medicine/laureates/2002
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For more information:
Pam Whitworth
Director of Communications & Public Affairs
BC Cancer Agency
604.877.6107
pwhitwor@bccancer.bc.ca