Professor Gabriel Waksman elected to German National Academy of Sciences
Professor Waksman is honoured by the German Leopoldina in recognition of his research into bacteria secretion systems.
Professor Gabriel Waksman, Head of Birkbeck’s Department of Biological Sciences, has been elected to the German National Academy of Sciences or Leopoldina, the German equivalent of the Royal Society. His election is in recognition of his research into the structural and molecular biology of secretion systems in bacteria. These systems determine bacteria survival, adaptation and evolution, making them ideal targets for developing new antibiotics.
Election to the Leopoldina, the oldest continuously existing academy of medicine and the natural sciences in the world, is the highest academic honour awarded by a German institution. Its membership of 1,400 distinguished scholars is drawn from 30 countries and past members have included such eminent scientists as Marie Curie, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein and Max Planck.
Professor Waksman commented on his election: "I am delighted to have been elected to this prestigious academy. It not only recognises the quality of the work we've done over the years, but also, cements a strong relationship between my laboratory and laboratories in Germany."
This academic honour comes on top of Professor Waksman’s election as a Fellow of the Royal Society last year, together with three major funding awards (an advanced ERC grant, a MRC programme grant and a Wellcome Trust senior investigator award) for his research.
Read more about the work of the Waksman Lab.