Distinguished Research Award: Evelyn M. Witkin, Ph.D.

Barbara McClintock Professor Emerita, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

"This is a wonderful time to be celebrating biomedical research. In the last fifty years, our fundamental knowledge of biology exploded. As a result, our scientists now have entirely new ways to attack problems of health and disease, with results that promise to revolutionize medicine in our time."

A nationally and internationally acclaimed scientist, Dr. Evelyn Witkin, the recipient of NJABR's Distinguished Research Award, was largely responsible for creating the field of DNA mutagenesis and DNA repair, the investigation of how mutations occur in DNA and how they may be corrected. Her pioneering work - which profoundly increased our understanding of the genetic response to harmful environmental factors - has played a pivotal role in the biochemical sciences and in clinical radiation therapy for cancer. Dr. Witkin has not only made seminal discoveries but has also been instrumental in defining and establishing the field of "Biological Responses to DNA Damage."

A gifted researcher and highly effective teacher, Dr. Witkin is widely known for her ability to clearly define and characterize complex genetic phenomena as well as her ability to excite and support others in the use of genetics as a powerful tool for dissecting biological problems. In 1973, she defined the E. coli "SOS Response," a system that is triggered by DNA damage. This system activates at least 40 genes that promote DNA repair and enhances individual and population survival. We now know that humans and many other organisms use the same kinds of DNA repair mechanisms.

Dr. Witkin holds a Ph.D. in Genetics from Columbia University. Throughout the course of her distinguished career, she has received many awards including election to the National Academy of Sciences, the 1982 American Women of Science Award for Outstanding Research, the Prix Charles Leopold Mayer, Academie des Sciences de l'Institut de France and the 2000 Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal of the Genetics Society of America. In 2002, she was awarded the National Medal of Science, our nation's highest science honor, in recognition of the tremendous contribution she has made to biological research.

Perhaps a colleague said it best when he commented, "Dr. Witkin is a national treasure, as well as a beacon of Rutgers excellence in the Life Sciences. She represents the best in science and the best in humanity."

Following her retirement in 1991, Dr. Witkin continues to lead a broad and active life of scholarship with frequent connections to young scientists, a strong commitment to science education in public schools and studies into the works of Charles Darwin and his contemporary, the poet Robert Browning.