EMBO Gold Medal awarded to Elvan Böke

The scientist is recognized for her pioneering research on physiological mechanisms that enable oocytes to stay healthy over decades of dormancy

2024-06-25

(Press-News.org) EMBO awards the EMBO Gold Medal 2024 to Elvan Böke, group leader at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona, Spain. The award recognizes researchers under the age of 40 for outstanding contributions to the life sciences in Europe. The awardee receives a gold medal and a bursary of 10,000 euros.

Early-stage oocytes are exposed to biological and environmental factors for decades, which can make them susceptible to cumulative damage. At the same time, the growth phases associated with oocyte maturation could cause defects due to exposure to harmful substances or lifestyle factors.1

“Elvan Böke’s work has yielded ground-breaking insights into a key mechanism used by oocytes to reduce free radical damage,” said Anthony Hyman, EMBO Member and Director at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany. “She has built a unique research direction in the few years of her independence as a researcher.”

“More recently, her lab tackled the important question of how long-lasting oocytes can deal with misfolded proteins aggregates accumulated during their rest in the ovary. They have discovered a completely novel structure, a super-organelle,” added Marie-Hélène Verlhac, EMBO Member and Director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Biology (CIRB), Paris, France. “Elvan Böke has a very original approach of an extensively studied model system, the mammalian oocytes, and she has brought a fresh eye, asking novel and important biological questions,” she said.

“Elvan Böke’s group is tackling multiple questions in oocyte biology, centered around the unique properties of a cell that grows to an unusual size and spends months to years in a dormant state, all while protecting the germline genome. These are fascinating fundamental questions that lie at the heart of the germline-soma divide. They are also central to reproductive aging in women, which is a major societal and medical issue,” commented Timothy Mitchison, EMBO Associate Member and Professor of Systems Biology at the Blatvatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.

Elvan Böke was an undergraduate student at Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey, and a graduate student at Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute, Manchester, UK, before becoming a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA. Since 2017, she has been leading a group in the quantitative cell biology programme at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona, Spain.

Elvan Böke will give an award lecture at Cell Bio2024, the ASCB | EMBO meeting taking place in San Diego, USA, from 14 to 18 December 2024.

1) https://www.crg.eu/en/news/when-do-oocytes-begin-experience-effects-age (retrieved 19 June 2024)

END

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Battling anthracnose: Unearthing the plant's arsenal against pathogenic fungi

2024-06-25

A pivotal study has shed light on the intricate mechanisms of nonhost resistance (NHR) in plants, a critical defense against a broad spectrum of pathogens. By identifying and characterizing four novel core effectors from the pathogen Colletotrichum fructicola, researchers have unveiled key players in the plant Nicotiana benthamiana's immune response. This discovery is set to transform approaches to plant disease management, offering a pathway to bolster crops against devastating fungal infections. Plant diseases caused by pathogens like Colletotrichum ...

Robots face the future

2024-06-25

Researchers have found a way to bind engineered skin tissue to the complex forms of humanoid robots. This brings with it potential benefits to robotic platforms such as increased mobility, self-healing abilities, embedded sensing capabilities and an increasingly lifelike appearance. Taking inspiration from human skin ligaments, the team, led by Professor Shoji Takeuchi of the University of Tokyo, included special perforations in a robot face, which helped a layer of skin take hold. Their research could be useful in the cosmetics industry and to help train plastic surgeons. Takeuchi is a pioneer in the field of biohybrid ...

Physical, sexual, and intimate partner violence among transgender and gender-diverse individuals

2024-06-25

About The Study: In this survey study of adults in California, results showed that transgender and gender-diverse individuals, especially transgender men, are at higher risk of experiencing all forms of violence relative to cisgender women. Results highlight the need for gender-affirming violence prevention and intervention services as well as policies that protect transgender and gender-diverse individuals from discriminatory violence. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Sabrina ...

Bone health after exercise alone, GLP-1 receptor agonist treatment, or combination treatment

2024-06-25

About The Study: The combination of exercise and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) (liraglutide) was the most effective weight loss strategy while preserving bone health in this randomized clinical trial. Liraglutide treatment alone reduced bone mineral density at clinically relevant sites more than exercise alone despite similar weight loss. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Signe Sorensen Torekov, Ph.D., email torekov@sund.ku.dk. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.16775) Editor’s Note: Please ...

Penn study finds better survival rates for recipients of lungs from hospital-based donor care units compared to independent donor care units

2024-06-25

PHILADELPHIA— A new study by Penn researchers examined, for the first time, the differences in lung transplant graft outcomes from organs recovered from the two types of deceased organ donor care facilities operating in the United States. The research, published today in JAMA Network Open, offers insights that could improve the organ donation and transplantation process for patients across the nation. In the U.S., deceased organ donors are traditionally cared for in hospitals, which provide intensive care and testing needed to rehabilitate organs, identify transplant ...

3D-printed chip sensor detects foodborne pathogens for safer products

2024-06-25

WASHINGTON, June 25, 2024 – Every so often, a food product is recalled because of some sort of contamination. For consumers of such products, a recall can trigger doubt in the safety and reliability of what they eat and drink. In many cases, a recall will come too late to keep some people from getting ill. In spite of the food industry’s efforts to fight pathogens, products are still contaminated and people still get sick. Much of the problem stems from the tools available to screen for harmful pathogens, which are often not effective enough at protecting the public. In AIP Advances, by AIP Publishing, researchers from Guangdong University of Technology and Pudong ...

A model of Collaborative Ethics to guide translational research from fundamental discoveries to real-world applications

2024-06-25

By Benjamin Boettner (BOSTON) — In sciences, disruptive research that is breaking new ground often raises new and not-yet-explored ethical questions. Although new scientific breakthroughs can have the power to change how we understand and live in the world, the ethical implications of technologies that will emerge based on these new insights can affect an emerging field’s public acceptance and have moral implications for society at large. They can also impact the process of translating discoveries into real-world products, sometimes requiring new regulation. Historically, ethicists – who form the branch of philosophy that is concerned with morality and studies ...

Frauke Gräter appointed new director at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research

2024-06-25

How can artificial intelligence and machine learning be used for innovative research in the field of soft matter? Frauke Gräter, the current Head of the Molecular Biomechanics group at the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS) and Professor of Molecular Biomechanics at Heidelberg University, will research these and other topics as the new Director at the MPI for Polymer Research starting July 1, 2024. Frauke Gräter has made an international name for herself through her outstanding scientific contributions, particularly in the field of molecular biomechanics. Her academic ...

Scientists demonstrate for first the time that a group of butterflies flies across the Atlantic Ocean

2024-06-25

An international team of researchers, led by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), has documented a transoceanic flight of more than 4200 km by painted lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui), setting a record for an insect. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, involved researchers from the Botanical Institute of Barcelona (IBB), a joint center of the CSIC and the Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona, as well as from the W. Szafer Botanical Institute (Poland), the University of Ottawa (Canada), the Institute of Evolutionary ...

Oncolytic virus senecavirus A inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma proliferation and growth by inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis

2024-06-25

Background and Aims Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly aggressive tumor with limited treatment options and high mortality. Senecavirus A (SVA) has shown potential in selectively targeting tumors while sparing healthy tissues. This study aimed to investigate the effects of SVA on HCC cells in vitro and in vivo and to elucidate its mechanisms of action. Methods The cell counting kit-8 assay and colony formation assay were conducted to examine cell proliferation. Flow cytometry and nuclear staining were employed to analyze cell cycle distribution and apoptosis occurrence. ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

First-ever long read datasets added to two Kids First studies

Dual-laser technique lowers Brillouin sensing frequency to 200 MHz

Zhaoqi Yan named a 2025 Warren Alpert Distinguished Scholar

Editorial for the special issue on subwavelength optics

Oyster fossils shatter myth of weak seasonality in greenhouse climate

Researchers demonstrate 3-D printing technology to improve comfort, durability of ‘smart wearables’

USPSTF recommendation on screening for syphilis infection during pregnancy

Butterflies hover differently from other flying organisms, thanks to body pitch

New approach to treating aggressive breast cancers shows significant improvement in survival

African genetic ancestry, structural and social determinants of health, and mortality in Black adults

Stigmatizing and positive language in birth clinical notes associated with race and ethnicity

Analysis of the disease spectrum characteristics of inherited metabolic liver diseases in two hepatology specialist hospitals in Beijing over the past 20 years