Oliver Smithies wins Nobel Prize

Dr. Oliver Smithies, Excellence professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, is a co-recipient of Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for 2007.

The achievement marks the pinnacle of a scientific career for Smithies, a UNC faculty member for 19 years, containing numerous honors and two major innovations that have fundamentally changed the science of genetic medicine and research.

In the mid-1980s, Smithies co-discovered a technique to introduce DNA material in cells, replicating a natural process called homologous DNA recombination. This "gene targeting" led to the creation of transgenic mice, or "designer mice," that replicated human disease.

According to the Nobel committee, "gene targeting in mice has pervaded all fields of biomedicine. Its impact on the understanding of gene function and its benefits to mankind will continue to increase over many years to come."

"Scientist, scholar, mentor – Oliver Smithies adds Nobel Laureate to a long and glorious career," said Dr. William L. Roper, dean of the UNC School of Medicine, vice chancellor for medical affairs and chief executive officer of the UNC Health Care System. "It gives us great pleasure to say congratulations on achieving this wonderful honor."

Smithies came to UNC in 1988. His lab focuses on developing animal models for studying gene therapy in hypertension and other genetic disorders, including sickle cell disease. He is a member of UNC's Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.