THE 2006 LOUIS-JEANTET PRIZE-WINNERS
The information below refers to the time of the award.
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THE 2006 LOUIS-JEANTET PRIZE-WINNERS are Kari ALITALO (Helsinki) and Christine PETIT (Paris).
Kari ALITALO receives the 2006 Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine for his pioneering work in the study of lymphangiogenesis (the formation of lymphatic vessels). In particular, he discovered the first growth factor controlling the formation of these vessels. A breakthrough that could lead to innovative anticancer therapies and to a new treatment for congenital lymphoedema, a disorder of the lymphatic system. Kari ALITALO will use the amount of the Prize to pursue his research work on growth factors involved in the regulation of angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis.
Christine PETIT receives the 2006 Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine for her pioneering work in the study of hereditary deafness. In particular, she has discovered numerous genes, defects in which cause congenital deafness, provided an understanding of the defective processes involved in this handicap and shed light on the cellular and molecular mechanisms of hearing. Christine PETIT will use the amount of the Prize to extend to the auditory pathways her study of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of hearing and of its dysfunction in humans.
THE AWARD CEREMONY was held on Friday April 28, 2006, in Geneva (Switzerland).
