March of Dimes Foundation Awards $250,000 Prize to Pioneers in Reproductive Biology

TORONTO, CANADA, MAY 7, 2007 – Two internationally renowned experts in mouse development have been chosen by the U.S. -based March of Dimes Foundation to receive the 2007 March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology.

Janet Rossant, Ph.D., FRS, FRS(C) and Anne McLaren, DBE, D.Phil, FRS, FRCOG, will share the March of Dimes Prize for their contributions to science's understanding of the entire cycle of mammalian reproduction and development, using the mouse as a model. 

This is the first time the Prize will be shared by two women.

The Prize is a $250,000 award and a silver medal in the design of the Roosevelt dime, in honor of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the March of Dimes founder.

Prof. Rossant, chief of research at the Hospital for Sick Children and University professor in the Departments of Medical Genetics & Microbiology and Obstetrics & Gynecology at the University of Toronto, is one of Canada's top stem cell researchers. 

“Her work on stem cell development and cell differentiation in mouse embryos has provided unique insight to the study of human birth defects and genetic predispositions to various human disorders,” said Michael Katz, M.D., senior vice president for Research and Global Program at the Foundation.

Prof. McLaren is principal research associate at the Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute at the University of Cambridge. In 1958, she and a fellow scientist reported in the journal Nature that they were the first to successfully grow a mouse embryo in a test tube and implant it into a mouse uterus to be born naturally.

“During a career spanning nearly 50 years, Prof. McLaren has pushed forward the boundaries of our knowledge of developmental biology and reproduction,” said Dr. Katz.

The March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology has been awarded annually since 1996.  The March of Dimes created the Prize as a tribute to Dr. Jonas Salk, who received support for his work to create a polio vaccine.

Prof. Rossant and Prof. McLaren will deliver the Twelfth Annual March of Dimes Prize Lectures during the Pediatric Academic Societies 2007 Annual Meeting.

The March of Dimes works to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality.  For more information, visit marchofdimes.com or nacersano.org for Spanish.