UT Southwestern (UTSW) biochemist Zhijian “James” Chen, Ph.D. is the 2024 recipient of the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, the country’s preeminent prize for biomedical research and sometimes referred to as “America’s Nobel.” The award recognizes Dr. Chen’s discovery of the cGAS enzyme, which senses invading pathogens and triggers the body’s immune system and could lead to potential new treatments for numerous illnesses from cancer to autoimmune diseases, such as lupus.
UTSW is one of the country’s preeminent research institutions with more than 1 million square feet of state-of-the-art research space. Facilities include 20 endowed centers, including one of only 11 National Institutes of Health (NIH) Nutrition Obesity Research Centers in the nation – and the only one in Texas. UTSW is also one of just 30 research sites in the U.S. participating in the National Human Genome Research Institute’s Impact of Genomic Variation on Function (IGVF) Consortium and is also one of 31 Rare Diseases Centers of Excellence in the nation.
In 2023, recognizing the talent, investment, and advancements at UTSW and other Dallas-based biotech companies, research sites, and academic institutions, the federal Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) chose Dallas for the location of its third headquarters, joining Boston and Washington, DC. ARPA-H is a research funding agency under the National Institutes for Health that supports transformative biomedical and health breakthroughs – ranging from the molecular to the societal – to provide health solutions for all.
As a global research leader, UTSW was also the first academic medical center in Texas to volunteer to be accountable to a performance-based funding mechanism for research dollars from the state. The formula incentivizes research growth while holding UTSW accountable for declines in performance.
“Texas’ academic medical centers are home to some of the world’s most creative and brilliant scientists and researchers, and their work benefits not just their local communities, not just Texas, not just the country, but the world,” said Maureen Milligan, Ph.D., president and CEO, Teaching Hospitals of Texas. “They have a special place in our healthcare ecosystem, and with the Texas Legislature’s ongoing support, UTSW and our other academic medical centers combine a commitment to local, community-based patient care with global leadership in biomedical research, scientific advancement, and the development of life-changing treatments and therapies.”
The Lasker Award is the latest honor for Dr. Chen, who previously earned the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences (2019), the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize (2023), and also this month, the Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize, Germany’s highest honor in the field of medicine.
