Jürgen Knoblich receives Kardinal-Innitzer-Würdigungspreis
On November 23rd, Jürgen Knoblich, senior scientist at IMBA and Professor for Synthetic Biology at the Medical University Vienna, received the Kardinal-Innitzer-Würdigungspreis of the Archdiocese of Vienna. Jürgen Knoblich and his team have received worldwide attention when they were able to model a human brain disease in three-dimensional cell cultures, avoiding animal experiments and recreating features of the disease that are unique to humans.
In 2013, Knoblich and his coworker Madeline Lancaster made a significant breakthrough by publishing the first use of cerebral organoids to study a human disease, specifically microcephaly. Since then, Knoblich and his team have continuously advanced the field, using cerebral organoids to explore fundamental questions about the human brain that cannot be addressed with other models. Lately, the team has developed the first model of long-range neuronal brain connections, which are unique to the human brain, and used brain organoids to uncover why human brains contain many more neurons than animal brains. The team also introduced a new brain organoid system in which they can study the expression of genes at the single-cell level. This new system has allowed them to systematically probe how autism-risk genes affect brain development. “Animal experiments are not only ethically problematic, they also cannot recapitulate the complexity and particularities of the human brain,” says Jürgen Knoblich, who is also a member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the oldest scientific academy in the world.
The Kardinal-Innitzer-Prize is a science award presented by the Archdiocese of Vienna, and named after Kardinal Theodor Innitzer. Its Grand Prize recognizes “Lifetime Achievement”, while appreciation prizes are awarded in the categories “Humanities”, “Science” and “Journalism”. The awards are presented annually by the Archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, as part of a festive awards ceremony. “I’m honored to be recognized with the Kardinal-Innitzer-Würdigungspreis”, says Knoblich. “The prize acknowledge the work my team and I have done, and I’m grateful for the support that has made our research possible.”