The 2010 American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Abbott-ASM Lifetime Achievement Award is being presented to Lucy Shapiro, Ph.D., Director, Beckman Center for Molecular and Genetic Medicine, Stanford University, CA, for her work on understanding the life of a cell. Sponsored by Abbott Laboratories, this is ASM's premier award for sustained, remarkable contributions to the microbiological sciences.
Shapiro's three decades of work on Caulobacter cresentus has provided the most thorough understanding of the cell cycle in bacteria. Her research has shown that the cell is an integrated system in which its transcriptional circuitry is interwoven with the three-dimensional deployment of key regulatory and morphological proteins. By using the advanced technologies of cell biology, molecular genetics, genomic analyses, and molecular imaging of this bacterium, Shapiro and her coworkers made significant advances in understanding three fundamental problemsthe complete genetic network that controls bacterial cell cycle progression; how a dividing cell can produce two progeny with different cell fates; and how subcellular structures are built at specific sites on the cell and at specific times in the cell cycle.
Shapiro's work sparked an interest in complex bacterial lifestyles and responses and her genetic analysis and systems analysis provide a paradigm for understanding regulation of development in microbial systems.
The Abbott-ASM Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented during the 110th General Meeting of the ASM, May 23-27, 2010 in San Diego, CA. ASM is the world's oldest and largest life science organization and has more than 43,000 members worldwide. ASM's mission is to advance the microbiological sciences and promote the use of scientific knowledge for improved health and economic and environmental well-being.