Having received the 6th BBVA Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Biology and Biomedicine, biochemist Adrian Bird explains in this interview how his discoveries on DNA methylation and the proteins that recognize these epigenetic marks have transformed our understanding of gene expression control. Bird details how these mechanisms regulate essential processes of cell development and function, and how their alterations are implicated in diseases such as Rett syndrome and various neurological disorders. He also reflects on the therapeutic potential of epigenetics and how deciphering these chemical codes opens new avenues for the diagnosis and treatment of complex diseases. His testimony demonstrates the profound impact of molecular biology on contemporary medicine.
The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Biomedicine category goes in this sixth edition to British biochemist Adr
Having received the 6th BBVA Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Biology and Biomedicine, biochemist Adrian Bird explains in this interview how his discoveries on DNA methylation and the proteins that recognize these epigenetic marks have transformed our understanding of gene expression control. Bird details how these mechanisms regulate essential processes of cell development and function, and how their alterations are implicated in diseases such as Rett syndrome and various neurological disorders. He also reflects on the therapeutic potential of epigenetics and how deciphering these chemical codes opens new avenues for the diagnosis and treatment of complex diseases. His testimony demonstrates the profound impact of molecular biology on contemporary medicine.
The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Biomedicine category goes in this sixth edition to British biochemist Adrian Bird for his discoveries in the field of epigenetics, which studies how environmental factors influence diseases such as cancer. Bird’s signal achievement was to map the regions of DNA where genes are activated by a process known as methylation.
00:00 Introduction
00:05 How did you feel when you learned that you had been awarded the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Biomedicine category?
00:35 The award recognizes your contribution to epigenetics, particularly in elucidating the role of methylation. Could you briefly explain what epigenetics is and what methylation involves?
02:03 What impact has your research had, or could it have, on cancer research?
03:05 One of your more recent contributions demonstrated in an animal model that a neurological disorder, Rett syndrome, is in fact reversible. Was this the outcome you were seeking in your experiments? Given these results, what prospects do you see for future research into this and other neurological diseases?
05:32 What motivated you, as a basic researcher, to become so personally involved in the search for a therapy for Rett syndrome?
