2008 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Professor Martin Chalfie delivered a lecture on the topic ‘Guarantor Transcription Factors in Cell Differentiation’ on 29th January, 2018 at the School of Life Sciences auditorium, UoH, as a part of the Hyderabad Lecture Series, 2018 organized by the University of Hyderabad in association with Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).

2

This was the fourth lecture of the series organized with an aim to bring very eminent personalities to lecture on topics of wide interest and contemporary issues.

Prof. Appa Rao Podile, Vice-Chancellor, UoH, welcomed Prof. Chalfie and also welcomed several scientists, faculties and students present at the venue.

1

Prof. Chalfie, thanked the organizers for inviting him to deliver a lecture on his work. He started the lecture by discussing the advantages of biology pre-prints and talked about ASAPbio, a scientist-driven initiative to promote transparency and innovation in life sciences communication. He also spoke at length about Biology Preprint Journal Club and its contribution in generating discourses in biological sciences.

The Nobel Laureate further discussed the function of Touch Receptor Neuron in living bodies in context of his work, factors affecting the loss of touch sensitivity and the importance of ALR-1 (Algae Light Reactor). He also acknowledged the contribution of Edward Butts Lewis, an American geneticist and a recipient of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

6

In the end, Prof. Appa Rao honored Prof. Martin by presenting a shawl and memento. Prof. Sreenivasulu proposed the vote of thanks concluding the event. The lecture was webcasted live and is also available on the YouTube page of University of Hyderabad.

4


About Hyderabad Lecture Series (Sponsored by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI))

The UoH is hosting the Hyderabad Lecture series with an aim to bring very eminent persons to lecture on topics of wide interest and contemporary issues at few locations in the city. Through this lecture series a large cross-section of the society of the city will be exposed to the leading minds of the world, and the format of having several lecture series by one person will enable them to develop a theme. The Hyderabad Lecture Series is sponsored by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI). This endowment made it possible for the Hyderabad citizens to listen to 3 Nobel Laureates so far and this is the 4th in the series.

3

About Prof. Martin Chalfie:

Prof. Martin Chalfie, a University Professor at Columbia University, is the recipient of 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry along with Osamu Shimomura and Roger Y. Tsien for the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein (GFP). He holds a Ph.D. in neurobiology from Harvard University. He shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his introduction of green fluorescent protein (GFP) from jelly fish as a biological marker.

By
Monika Tiwari and Swati Pant