UH researcher to get honor for biology work
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Health Writer
The University of Hawai'i researcher best known for his pioneering work in mouse cloning will be honored by a national institute next month for three decades of achievement in the field of reproductive biology.
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Ryuzo Yanagimachi will be recognized by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in its new Hall of Honor for his "basic discoveries in reproductive biology that provided the foundation for human infertility treatments."
"It was a surprise," Ryuzo Yanagimachi said.
He is credited with helping to make it possible for otherwise infertile couples to have babies through in vitro fertilization and other scientific advances.
The institute selected him as one of 15 people to be honored for "exceptional contributions to advancing knowledge and to improving maternal and child health."
Yanagimachi said he learned of the award about two weeks ago when he got a call from Dr. Duane Alexander, NICHD director. "It was a surprise," Yanagimachi said.
The native of Hokkaido, Japan, said he is very appreciative of the institute's recognition and is grateful for the opportunities he has received at UH and in the United States. "It's a great honor," said Yanagimachi, who has been with UH since 1966.
Yanagimachi, known as "Yana" by colleagues, made international headlines in 1998 when his research team cloned three generations of mice starting with a single mouse named Cumulina. More fame followed with the cloning of green mice. But Yanagimachi said the cloning is just an extension of his focus on reproductive biology. "Cloning is not my real specialty," he said.
Yanagimachi colleague W. Steven Ward is an associate professor in the UH department of anatomy and reproductive biology. He said the award represents recognition by his peers for a lifetime of achievement. "It's like the baseball hall of fame for scientists," Ward said.
The award will be presented at a Sept. 22 ceremony as part of the 40th anniversary meeting of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Council in Bethesda, Md.
Portraits of Yanagimachi and the others honored will be hung in the hall at the national offices along with brief descriptions of their research contributions.
Yanagimachi, who runs the Institute for Biogenesis Research at UH, was elected to the National Academy of Science in 2001.
Yanagimachi, who will be 74 later this month, conducted his groundbreaking research in a rickety old building tucked away on campus before the new $4.9 million institute was built in 2000.
Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
