Tomo Tanaka awarded Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellowship January 24, 2012 Professor Tomo Tanaka has been awarded a highly prestigious Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellowship, for research into “Molecular mechanisms regulating the kinetochore-microtubuleinteraction in mitosis”. The Wellcome Trust considers these to be most prestigious of their personal awards, providing long-term support for researchers of international standing. All Wellcome Principal Research Fellows will have demonstrated an established track record in research at the highest level. New awards are for seven years and provide both a personal salary and major research funding. Professor Tanaka is Professor of Cell & Molecular Biology at the Wellcome Trust centre for Gene Regulation and Expression and is currently a Cancer Research UK Senior Research Fellow. He is an EMBO member and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. The Tanaka Lab’s research focuses on the way cells control how chromosomes are correctly segregated into daughter cells when cells divide. Mistakes in this process are an underlying cause of many forms of human disease, including cancer and congenital disorders. Further information about research by the Tanankagroup can be found at http://www.lifesci.dundee.ac.uk/gre Professor Tanaka said, “I am delighted to receive this prestigious fellowship from The Wellcome Trust. I want to thank all the past and present members of my group for their hard work and creativity that have made this award possible. I am also grateful to the GRE Centre and the College for providing such an excellent research environment. ” Wellcome Trust Centre for Gene Regulation and Expression Director, Angus Lamond, who also holds a Wellcome Trust Principal Fellowship, was delighted at the news and said, “We all congratulate Tomo on this excellent achievement, which is a major recognition of the importance and novelty of his research and the high regard in which he is held by his peers. Tomo’s success is a wonderful example of the leading role Dundee has established in nurturing world leading innovation in biomedical research. It demonstrates our ability to attract the best international scientists to come and work in Scotland reflects very well on both GRE and CLS.” Professor Mike Ferguson Dean of the School of Research at the College of Life Sciences said, “I am delighted that Tomo hasreceived this most prestigious of Fellowships to pursue his ground-breaking work on chromosome segregation. It is anacknowledgmentof his research excellence and that ofthe Centre and the College as a whole.” Professor Tanaka’s award brings the total number of Wellcome Principal Research Fellows at the College to four. Other fellowship holders include: Professor Doreen Cantrell, Division of Cell Signalling and Immunology, for ”Analysis of serine kinase function and regulation in T lymphocytes”. Professor Alan Fairlamb,Division of Biological Chemistry and Drug Discovery for “ Characterisation and validation of drug targets in the Kinetoplastida”. Professor Angus Lamond Wellcome Trust Centre for Gene Regulation and Expression for “ Structure and function of the mammalian cell nucleus”.
