UW hosting Nobel Prize winner Sept. 25

The University of Wyoming's College of Agriculture is hosting Nobel laureate Dr. J. Michael Bishop on Friday, Sept. 25. His visit coincides with Ag Appreciation Weekend.

In a presentation open to the public, Bishop will talk about the molecular biology of cancer and the surprising discovery that normal genes can cause cancer under certain circumstances, which was the subject of his Nobel Prize in 1989.

The talk begins at 2:10 p.m. in Room 103 of the Animal Science/Molecular Biology Building, and a reception will follow.

"Professor Bishop identified many genes associated with the development of cancer, which are now generally known as oncogenes, and he discovered these genes are derived from certain normal cellular genes, which are now generally known as proto-oncogenes," said UW Department of Molecular Biology Professor Don Jarvis.

Jarvis first met Bishop in 1985 while attending graduate school at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and is hosting his UW visit.

The discoveries identified key genetic markers that can be used for diagnosis and specific targets that can be used to develop chemotherapeutic agents against various types of cancer.

Bishop, who is at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and his long-time collaborator, Dr. Harold Varmus, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery of the cellular origin of retroviral oncogenes.

Proto-oncogenes are members of a large family of genes whose products control normal cell growth and division. Bishop and Varmus found that alterations in one or more of these so-called proto-oncogenes can give rise to oncogenes, whose products can transform normal cells and lead to the development of cancer.

"Professors Bishop and Varmus spent most of their careers studying retroviruses, which are viruses that can cause cancer," Jarvis said. "Their transformative contribution was the basic finding that viral oncogenes are derived from normal cellular genes encoding proteins with key roles in cell growth and/or division. Viral and other oncogenes, however, are modified versions of these genes, which can provoke cellular growth and/or division in abnormal ways."

In essence, Jarvis said, the production of these gene products can convert a normal cell to a cancer cell. "Many leukemias are very good examples of this," he noted.

Jarvis said he believes the general public, not just molecular biologists and other scientists, will find Bishop's presentation fascinating for several reasons.

"The talk will focus on a subject that either has or probably will touch all of us in our lifetimes," said Jarvis, who noted nearly everyone is affected by the disease, either by getting cancer themselves or having a family member or close friend become sick.

Jarvis said he also believes those attending will personally relate to Bishop because of his enthusiasm, energy and interesting personal and educational background.

"Professor Bishop received the first eight years of his education in a two-room schoolhouse and has stated he actually had very little exposure to science during that time," Jarvis said. "In his autobiography, Bishop describes being strongly influenced by a teacher who taught all subjects for grades five through eight in a single room of the small schoolhouse, was a fierce disciplinarian and strict grammarian, and who enforced good penmanship with a vengeance."

Jarvis speculates this influence must have contributed to Bishop's passion for good writing and to his ability to communicate in ways that are not only understandable but elegant and entertaining.

Bishop argues in his autobiography, How to Win the Nobel Prize An Unexpected Life in Science, that scientists need to communicate better with the general public. "I enjoy writing and abhor the dreadful prose that afflicts much of the contemporary scientific literature," he wrote.

Jarvis believes others might relate to Bishop because of his readily admitted struggle to find a focus in his academic life. At various times, Bishop thought about becoming a medical doctor, historian, philosopher and musician, Jarvis said, "but never a scientist. Yet, he has clearly had an eminent academic career in science. He also has an eclectic range of other interests that one hesitates to describe as ‘outside' interests."

Bishop wrote, "If offered reincarnation, I would choose the career of a performing musician with exceptional talent, preferably, in a string quartet. One lifetime as a scientist is enough great fun, but enough."

Jarvis said he can relate.

"A career of science, research and teaching usually means a lot of long hours. You spend your whole career working really hard, focusing on science at the expense of many other things. But, it's clear to me Mike Bishop has risen above the norm. He is one of those rare individuals who has made exceptional contributions in his scientific career but also has an exceptionally broad range of knowledge in many other academic areas, including music, art and history," Jarvis said. "Simply put, Mike is the model of a Renaissance man."

Bishop, 73, joined the UCSF faculty in 1968 and was named chancellor in 1998, a post he held until stepping down in June. While serving as chancellor, he continued to teach medical students and direct his research lab. He continues to serve on the UCSF faculty as a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and as director of the G.W. Hooper Foundation, a biomedical research unit at UCSF.

"There is one more story that helps to put Mike's life in perspective," Jarvis said. "He is an avid San Francisco Giants fan, and the original schedule for the press conference announcing his Nobel Prize conflicted with a key game during the National League playoffs between the Giants and Chicago Cubs. The press conference was held, but the time was changed so he could be at the ballpark in time for batting practice."

More information about Bishop and the Nobel Prize is at http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/1989/.

A schedule of events and stories about Ag Appreciation Weekend are at http://www.uwyo.edu/UWAG/09Appreciation_weekend.asp

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Posted on Monday, September 14, 2009

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