MSI Principal Investigator David Largaespada (Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development) has received the American Cancer Society’s Research Professor Award. According to the ACS website, this award is presented to “mid-career investigators who have made seminal contributions that have changed the direction of basic cancer research.” The award includes a five-year grant that can be renewed for an additional five years. Only two researchers are selected each year. A story about Professor Largaespada appears in the People section of the University website.
Professor Largaespada’s research involves using a transposon system called Sleeping Beauty to find new cancer cells. The approach can be used to understand the genetic basis for many types of cancer. Professor Largaespada and his research group have been using MSI since 2002. They use various software packages to analyze their data.
The only other University of Minnesota recipient of this award, Stephen Hecht (Laboratory Medicine and Pathology), has been an MSI PI for over a decade. He held the award during 2000-10. Professor Hecht uses MSI resources for his research into tobacco-specific N-nitrosamines, which are considered to be among the major carcinogens in tobacco products.