For his renowned contributions to cancer genetics and the establishment of genetically engineered animal cells and for first describing a role for the RAS gene family in human cancer and describing how point mutations are capable of activating the oncogenic potential of select genes.
Dr. Wigler’s landmark contributions to molecular biology have revolutionized genetics, including modern approaches to cancer research. Renowned as a trailblazer of genetically engineering animal cells, he was the first to utilize epitope tagging for protein purification among many other methods now considered essential to the study of mammalian genetics. Dr. Wigler’s patents include the production of medicinal proteins used for the treating strokes and cancer, and the creation of gene libraries encoding diverse families of antibody molecules, a concept commonly applied in the development of antibody-based therapeutics. His group is considered one of the first to isolate and clone the first oncogene which would ultimately be found to be homologous to the RAS genes in Harvey and Kirsten sarcoma viruses. Utilizing yeast genetics, he unraveled the RAS signaling cascade and determined the role of Ras gene point mutations in activating its oncogenic potential. His unparalleled scientific foresight and inventiveness have led to the development of genomic technologies for identifying copy number variations, single cell analysis, and sensitive detection of point mutations that have had profound implications for cancer detection and prognosis, as well as to understanding the origins of a wide array of sporadic genetic diseases, such as autism and pediatric cancers.
Dr. Wigler’s work continues to expand molecular and genomic methods for understanding a variety of fundamental problems of cell physiology. His myriad of contributions to the field are now fundamental concepts in cancer biology, with methods developed by his group being routinely used in cancer research laboratories worldwide.
Selected Awards and Honors
2007 ~ Double Helix Medal, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York
1998 ~ Elected Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Cambridge, Massachusetts
1998 ~ The Stevens Triennial Prize, Columbia University, New York, New York
1997 ~ Elected Fellow, American Academy of Microbiology, American Society for Microbiology, Washington, DC
1995 ~ Katherine Berkan Judd Award, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
1991 ~ AACR-G.H.A. Clowes Award for Outstanding Basic Cancer Research, Association for American Cancer Research, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1990 ~ Lucy Wortham James Laboratory Basic Research Award in Cancer Research, Society of Surgical Oncology, Rosemont, Illinois
1989 ~ Elected Member, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC
1989 ~ Distinguished Alumni Award, University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, New Jersey
1998 ~ Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research Award, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
1986 ~ Ciba-Drew Award for Biomedical Research, Novartis International, AG, Basel, Switzerland
1986 ~ Lifetime Research Professorship Award, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, Georgia
1985 ~ Outstanding Investigator Award, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
1985 ~ Pfizer Biomedical Research Award, Pfizer, Inc., New York, New York