Jeffery A. Lowell, M.D.
champions organ donation awareness
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Jeffery A. Lowell, M.D. champions organ donation awareness |
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Monsanto establishes scholarship in recognition of Nobel laureate
By Barbara Rea Monsanto Co. has established a University endowed scholarship fund for Arts & Sciences in recognition of Nobel laureate and retired Monsanto researcher William S. Knowles. The $50,000 gift will support undergraduates majoring in the life sciences. The first recipients will be named in the fall. "Washington University is honored to receive this scholarship grant from Monsanto Co. in Dr. Knowles' name," Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton said. "The gift recognizes a great researcher while helping future generations of scientists. Monsanto has supported us for many years in advancing scientific discoveries, and we are grateful for their continued support." Edward S. Macias, Ph.D., executive vice chancellor and dean of Arts & Sciences, said, "A great university needs exceptional students, and scholarships such as this one enable us to compete with other top schools to recruit the best and the brightest without regard to financial ability." The scholarship's namesake is the 2001 recipient of the Nobel Prize in chemistry, which Knowles shared with Ryoji Noyori of Nagoya University in Nagoya, Japan, and K. Barry Sharpless of the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif. The award was for their development of catalytic asymmetric synthesis. Knowles discovered that it was possible to use transition metals to make chiral catalysts for an important type of reaction called hydrogenation, thereby obtaining the desired mirror image form as the final product. His research quickly led to an industrial process for the production of the L-DOPA drug that is used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Knowles helped open a new field of research in which it is possible to synthesize molecules and material with new properties, leading to the development of pharmaceutical products such as antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs and heart medicines. Knowles' distinction as a Nobel laureate is the latest in a long series of St. Louis scientists who have received the highest level of recognition. "The remarkable number of Nobel laureates with a connection to St. Louis institutions speaks to the basic strength and quality of science conducted here," said Thomas A. Woolsey, M.D., director of the division of experimental neurology and neurological surgery in the School of Medicine and president of The Academy of Science of St. Louis. The academy recently honored Knowles for his contributions to science. Twenty-one members of the Washington University faculty, beginning with Arthur Holly Compton in 1927, have received a Nobel Prize, predominantly in medicine. |
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