2. Vienna Seminar of Nobel Laureates

Physiology, genetic engineering and biochemistry

The second Vienna Seminar of Nobel Laureates began on June 28, 2007, with a ceremony / Wiener Vorlesung at Vienna City Hall. Nobel laureates Tim Hunt, Roger Kornberg, and Richard Roberts delivered lectures on “Physiology, Gene Technology, and Biochemistry”. The ceremony concluded with a panel discussion.

On June 29, 2007, the seminar continued with specialized lectures by the Nobel laureates at the Vienna Biocenter and the Medical University of Vienna.

Nobel Laureates 2007

Tim Hunt

Sir Richard Timothy Hunt, born on 19 February 1943 in Neston, England, is the bearer of the 2001 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

Tim Hunt was awarded his doctorate from the University of Cambridge, England. Following this he worked at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, and at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge. He has been working at Cancer Research UK, Clare Hall Laboratories, South Mimms, close to London, since 1990.

In 2001 Tim Hunt was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine together with Paul Nurse and Leland Hartwell. The prize was in recognition of the work this trio carried out in discovering the mechanisms that control the cell cycle.

Tim Hunt’s work has promoted greater understanding of the mutations of genetic material in cancer cells and has set out new principles for cancer therapy.

Roger Kornberg

Roger Kornberg, born on 24 April 1947 in St. Louis, USA, is the bearer of the 2006 Nobel Prize for Chemistry.

Roger Kornberg studied at Harvard University, Massachusetts, and at Stanford University in California. He then worked in Cambridge, England and at the Harvard Medical School. He has been professor of structural biology at Stanford University since 1978.

Roger D. Kornberg was awarded the 2006 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his work on the molecular basis of eukaryotic transcription - the copying of genetic information from the cell’s nucleus and transformation into ribonucleic acids.

He is especially interested in the enzyme RNA-polymerase which stimulates the production of ribonucleic acids, resulting ultimately in the production of proteins.

Richard Roberts

Richard John Roberts, born on 6 September 1943 in Derby, England, is the bearer of the 1993 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

Richard Roberts was awarded his doctorate in organic chemistry at the University of Sheffield and, after a post-doctoral position at Harvard University, worked at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York.

He has been head of research at New England Biolabs, Ipswich, a biotechnology company close to Boston, since 1992.

Together with Philip Sharp, Richard Roberts was awarded the 1993 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for the identification of the discontinuous structure of genes in cell organisms.

The discovery of “split genes” has acquired great importance in today’s basic biological research. It is of particular application for studies of genetic disease.

Commissioned composition

Katharina Klement

Born in Graz, Austria in 1963, study of piano and composition in Vienna; Commissions for compositions and performances at international festivals. Concert performance in the field of experimental, electronic and improvised musical compositions, interdisciplinary work (music and text, video), numerous CD releases, lives and works in Vienna.

The event also featured the premiere of “anneau”. The piece was a commissioned composition for the Vienna Seminar of Nobel Laureates.

Performers:
Eva Furrer, Contrabass Flute
Gerald Preinfalk, Baritone Saxophone
Martin Zrost, Alto Saxophone