Award Recipients | Warren Alpert Foundation

Alpert Prize Honors Bioengineering Luminaries

Congratulations 2011 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize recipients Alain F. Carpentier, MD, PhD and Robert S. Langer, ScD

The 2011 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize will be awarded to bioengineering pioneers Alain F. Carpentier and Robert S. Langer in recognition of their extraordinary contributions to medicine. The recipients, who will share an unrestricted prize of $250,000, will be honored at a symposium October 6, 2011, at Harvard Medical School.

The Alpert Prize recognizes researchers for laboratory discoveries with dramatic promise to improve human health. That spirit defines the remarkable careers of Langer, a basic scientist and engineer whose research is focused directly at the clinic, and Carpentier, a clinician whose practice has brought him to engineering.

The late Warren Alpert, a philanthropist dedicated to advancing biomedical research, established the Prize in 1987. To date, the Foundation has awarded more than $3 million to 39 individuals. Seven honorees have also received a Nobel Prize.

"The Alpert Prize was created to reward scientists whose discoveries have made great progress in new therapies for a wide range of diseases," said Jeffrey S. Flier, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University and chairman of the Foundation’s scientific advisory committee. "Alain F. Carpentier and Robert S. Langer’s research splendidly fulfills the Prize’s central mission."

Alain F. Carpentier Carpentier, head of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at the Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou in Paris, is renowned for his research on developing and implanting the first successful artificial bronchus, saving the lung of a patient with lung cancer. The cardiac surgeon also developed the world’s first artificial valve used in clinical practice. The valve utilizes animal tissues that are chemically processed in order to prevent immunological reaction when implanted in humans and currently benefits more than 100,000 patients each year. Carpentier is also a lead developer of a fully implantable artificial heart created from biomaterials, soon to enter clinical trials. He was elected President of the French Academy of Sciences in 2011.

"This prestigious award is a great honor for myself, my research team and my country," Carpentier said. "The development of biological valve prosthesis is a sterling example of the important contribution of bioengineering in the progress of surgery. We are proud that this new valve could benefit thousands of patients.

Robert Langer Langer, the David H. Koch Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is known widely for his advancements in both drug delivery and tissue engineering. He has developed polymers to deliver drugs continuously at controlled rates over time and has engineered blood vessels and vascularized skeletal muscle tissue. The world’s most cited engineer, Langer holds more than 800 granted or pending patents and is the youngest person to be elected to all three National Academies. Other recognitions include the National Medal of Science, the Charles Stark Draper Prize and the Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research; he is to receive the American Chemical Society Priestley Medal in 2012.

"I am very grateful to the Warren Alpert Foundation for recognizing my work, and I am honored to be in the company of the previous award winners." Langer said. "My colleagues and I remain dedicated to improving patients’ lives and are thrilled that the Foundation acknowledged our research with this prize."

Previous winners of the Warren Alpert Prize

2010 Howard Green, MD, for the development of methodologies for the expansion and differentiation of human keratinocyte stem cells for permanent skin restoration in victims of extensive burns.

2008/2009 Lloyd M. Aiello, MD, for the discovery, characterization and implementation of laser panretinal photocoagulation, which is used to treat proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Learn more >

2007 Harald zur Hausen, DSc, MD, and Lutz Gissmann, PhD, for work leading to the development of a vaccine against human papillomavirus. Learn more >

2006 H. Michael Shepard, PhD, Dennis Slamon, MD, PhD, Axel Ullrich, PhD, and Robert Weinberg, PhD, for their contribution to the development of the breast cancer therapy Herceptin, the first target-directed cancer treatment for solid tumors.

2005 Judah Folkman, MD, for discovering angiogenesis and its relationship to disease, and for championing the concept of anti-angiogenic therapies.

2004 Susan Band Horwitz, PhD, for her seminal contributions to the understanding of how the antitumor agent Taxol kills cancer cells.

2003 David V. Goeddel, PhD, Sidney Pestka, MD, and Charles Weissmann, MD, PhD, for their pioneering work on the purification, characterization, and cloning of human interferon-alpha.

2002 Alfred Sommer, MD, MHS, for his pioneering work in understanding the role of vitamin A supplementation in preventing blindness and life-threatening infections in children in the developing world.

2001 Eugene Braunwald, MD, and Barry Coller, MD, for their pioneering work in cardiovascular research which has dramatically reduced the mortality rate for heart attacks.

2000 David Baltimore, PhD, Owen N. Witte, MD, Alex Matter, MD, Nicholas B. Lyndon, PhD, and Brian J. Druker, MD, for their research that contributed to the development of a drug that effectively treats chronic megelogenous leukemia and other forms of cancer.

1999 Akira Endo, PhD, Michael S. Brown, MD, and Joseph L. Goldstein, MD, for their research in the development of stations which lower the level of cholesterol in the heart.

1998 K. Frank Austen, MD, for elucidating the pathway forming the leukotrienes and their role in bronchial asthma.

10th Anniversary Robert Gallo, MD, and Luc Montagnier, MD, for their discovery of human immune deficiency virus (HIV).

1996 Leo Sachs, PhD, Hon MD, and Donald Metcalf, MD, for their discoveries of molecules that regulate the growth and differentiation of bone marrow cells in health and disease.

1995 John A. Clements, MD, for the development of the lung susfactant used for treating pulmonory hyaline membrane disease.

1994 J. Robin Warren, MBBS, and Barry J. Marshall, MBBS, for identifying Helicobacter pylori as the organism that causes gastric and duodenal ulcers.

1993 Stuart H. Orkin, MD, for developing a complete description of thalassemia at the molecular level.

1992 Roscoe O. Brady, MD, for discovering the enzymatic basis of Gaucher's disease leading to its effective treatment.

1991 David W. Cushman, PhD, and Miguel A. Ondetti, PhD, for designing a powerful new approach to the treatment of high blood pressure and congestive heart failure.

1989 Yuet Wai Kan, MD, for pioneering the use of DNA in the diagnosis of congenital anemias.

1988 Louis M. Kunkel, PhD, for defining the genetic basis of muscular dystrophy.

1987 Kenneth Murray, PhD, for elaborating the genetics of Hepatitis B as the basis for its vaccine.



Award Recipients For a complete list of past recipients, click here. Alpert Prize Honors Bioengineering Luminaries Congratulations 2011 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize recipients Alain F. Carpentier, MD, PhD and Robert S. Langer, ScD The 2011 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize will be awarded to bioengineering pioneers Alain F. Carpentier and Robert S. Langer in recognition of their extraordinary contributions to medicine. The recipients, who will share an unrestricted prize of $250,000, will be honored at a symposium October 6, 2011, at Harvard Medical School. The Alpert Prize recognizes researchers for laboratory discoveries with dramatic promise to improve human health. That spirit defines the remarkable careers of Langer, a basic scientist and engineer whose research is focused directly at the clinic, and Carpentier, a clinician whose practice has brought him to engineering. The late Warren Alpert, a philanthropist dedicated to advancing biomedical research, established the Prize in 1987. To date, the Foundation has awarded more than $3 million to 39 individuals. Seven honorees have also received a Nobel Prize. "The Alpert Prize was created to reward scientists whose discoveries have made great progress in new therapies for a wide range of diseases," said Jeffrey S. Flier, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University and chairman of the Foundation’s scientific advisory committee. "Alain F. Carpentier and Robert S. Langer’s research splendidly fulfills the Prize’s central mission." Carpentier, head of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at the Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou in Paris, is renowned for his research on developing and implanting the first successful artificial bronchus, saving the lung of a patient with lung cancer. The cardiac surgeon also developed the world’s first artificial valve used in clinical practice. The valve utilizes animal tissues that are chemically processed in order to prevent immunological reaction when implanted in humans and currently benefits more than 100,000 patients each year. Carpentier is also a lead developer of a fully implantable artificial heart created from biomaterials, soon to enter clinical trials. He was elected President of the French Academy of Sciences in 2011. "This prestigious award is a great honor for myself, my research team and my country," Carpentier said. "The development of biological valve prosthesis is a sterling example of the important contribution of bioengineering in the progress of surgery. We are proud that this new valve could benefit thousands of patients. Langer, the David H. Koch Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is known widely for his advancements in both drug delivery and tissue engineering. He has developed polymers to deliver drugs continuously at controlled rates over time and has engineered blood vessels and vascularized skeletal muscle tissue. The world’s most cited engineer, Langer holds more than 800 granted or pending patents and is the youngest person to be elected to all three National Academies. Other recognitions include the National Medal of Science, the Charles Stark Draper Prize and the Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research; he is to receive the American Chemical Society Priestley Medal in 2012. "I am very grateful to the Warren Alpert Foundation for recognizing my work, and I am honored to be in the company of the previous award winners." Langer said. "My colleagues and I remain dedicated to improving patients’ lives and are thrilled that the Foundation acknowledged our research with this prize." Previous winners of the Warren Alpert Prize 2010 Howard Green, MD, for the development of methodologies for the expansion and differentiation of human keratinocyte stem cells for permanent skin restoration in victims of extensive burns. 2008/2009 Lloyd M. Aiello, MD, for the discovery, characterization and implementation of laser panretinal photocoagulation, which is used to treat proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Learn more > 2007 Harald zur Hausen, DSc, MD, and Lutz Gissmann, PhD, for work leading to the development of a vaccine against human papillomavirus. Learn more > 2006 H. Michael Shepard, PhD, Dennis Slamon, MD, PhD, Axel Ullrich, PhD, and Robert Weinberg, PhD, for their contribution to the development of the breast cancer therapy Herceptin, the first target-directed cancer treatment for solid tumors. 2005 Judah Folkman, MD, for discovering angiogenesis and its relationship to disease, and for championing the concept of anti-angiogenic therapies. 2004 Susan Band Horwitz, PhD, for her seminal contributions to the understanding of how the antitumor agent Taxol kills cancer cells. 2003 David V. Goeddel, PhD, Sidney Pestka, MD, and Charles Weissmann, MD, PhD, for their pioneering work on the purification, characterization, and cloning of human interferon-alpha. 2002 Alfred Sommer, MD, MHS, for his pioneering work in understanding the role of vitamin A supplementation in preventing blindness and life-threatening infections in children in the developing world. 2001 Eugene Braunwald, MD, and Barry Coller, MD, for their pioneering work in cardiovascular research which has dramatically reduced the mortality rate for heart attacks. 2000 David Baltimore, PhD, Owen N. Witte, MD, Alex Matter, MD, Nicholas B. Lyndon, PhD, and Brian J. Druker, MD, for their research that contributed to the development of a drug that effectively treats chronic megelogenous leukemia and other forms of cancer. 1999 Akira Endo, PhD, Michael S. Brown, MD, and Joseph L. Goldstein, MD, for their research in the development of stations which lower the level of cholesterol in the heart. 1998 K. Frank Austen, MD, for elucidating the pathway forming the leukotrienes and their role in bronchial asthma. 10th Anniversary Robert Gallo, MD, and Luc Montagnier, MD, for their discovery of human immune deficiency virus (HIV). 1996 Leo Sachs, PhD, Hon MD, and Donald Metcalf, MD, for their discoveries of molecules that regulate the growth and differentiation of bone marrow cells in health and disease. 1995 John A. Clements, MD, for the development of the lung susfactant used for treating pulmonory hyaline membrane disease. 1994 J. Robin Warren, MBBS, and Barry J. Marshall, MBBS, for identifying Helicobacter pylori as the organism that causes gastric and duodenal ulcers. 1993 Stuart H. Orkin, MD, for developing a complete description of thalassemia at the molecular level. 1992 Roscoe O. Brady, MD, for discovering the enzymatic basis of Gaucher's disease leading to its effective treatment. 1991 David W. Cushman, PhD, and Miguel A. Ondetti, PhD, for designing a powerful new approach to the treatment of high blood pressure and congestive heart failure. 1989 Yuet Wai Kan, MD, for pioneering the use of DNA in the diagnosis of congenital anemias. 1988 Louis M. Kunkel, PhD, for defining the genetic basis of muscular dystrophy. 1987 Kenneth Murray, PhD, for elaborating the genetics of Hepatitis B as the basis for its vaccine.		2011 Prize Honors Bioengineering Luminaries Alain F. Carpentier, MD, PhD and Robert S. Langer, ScD Read about the recipients. Nominations are closed for 2012. Please check back this spring for The Call for Nominations for the 2013 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize
©2011 Warren Alpert Foundation. All Rights Reserved.

Alpert Prize Honors Bioengineering Luminaries

Congratulations 2011 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize recipients Alain F. Carpentier, MD, PhD and Robert S. Langer, ScD

2011 Prize Honors Bioengineering Luminaries Alain F. Carpentier, MD, PhD and Robert S. Langer, ScD