Yale Biophysicist Thomas Steitz Receives Gairdner Award for Medical Research

Thomas A. Steitz led research on ribosome structure and function. Yale biophysicist Thomas A. Steitz has received one of the four 2007 Gairdner International Awards, among the most prestigious awards in science, for his groundbreaking work on the structure and function of the large subunit of the ribosome and the structural basis for the action of antibiotics that target the ribosome. “The 2007 awards reflect the importance of basic discoveries that lead to a better understanding of human disease and the development of treatments and cures to alleviate them,” said John Dirks, President and Scientific Director of the Gairdner Foundation.