DALLAS, Oct. 3, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Nobel Foundation today announced that Ralph Steinman, M.D., received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work with dendritic cells and adaptive immunology. Steinman, a professor at Rockefeller University, New York City, was recognized by the American Heart Association more than 30 years ago when it funded some of his research related to dendritic cell and transplant biology.
In the 1970's, Steinman discovered the immune system's sentinel dendritic cells and showed that these cells, along with other parts of the immune system, could activate what is known as "adaptive immunity," to help curb infections and to develop immunologic memory for protection in the future.
From 1980-1985, the American Heart Association provided Steinman an Established Investigator Award, which funds mid-term scientists with "unusual promise and an established record of accomplishments who have demonstrated a commitment to cardiovascular science." The project, "dendritic cells and transplant biology," investigated to what extent and by what mechanism dendritic cells influence transplant reactions. "Understanding dentritic cells should be critical for learning how graft responses are initiated," he wrote in his 1980 application.
Sadly, the Nobel announcement came just days after Steinman died Friday, Sept. 30, from pancreatic cancer.
"Although the American Heart Association is saddened to hear of Dr. Steinman's untimely death, we are grateful to have supported his important research, which was focused at helping countless people live longer lives," said Gordon Tomaselli, M.D. president of the American Heart Association. "Much of Steinman's work focused on cancer but he also worked to expand the understanding of immunology's role in transplant rejection."
Steinman's prize will be shared with Bruce A. Beutler, formerly of The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, Calif. and currently with UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, and Jules A. Hoffmann of the University of Strasbourg in France.
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