Boehringer Ingelheim announces winner of Heinrich Wieland Prize

Boehringer Ingelheim has announced the winner of the Heinrich Wieland Prize for 2008, with Professor Joachim Herz from the Department of Molecular Genetics of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre in Dallas picking up the accolade.

He received the award – together with prize money of 50,000 euros (34,970 pounds) – from Professor Konrad Sandhoff, chairman of the board of trustees in a ceremony held at the Ludwig-Maximilian-University in Munich.

Professor Herz was recognised with this award as a result of his work on lipoprotein receptors, regulators of cholesterol and lipid metabolism, with Professor Herz discovering the LRP1 receptor that plays a vital role in the uptake of lipids from food in the body during digestion.

Andreas Barner, head of research, development and medicine at Boehringer Ingelheim, said: “In the tradition of the Heinrich Wieland Prize, we have again awarded excellent basic research in accordance with our key principle, to provide value through innovation.”

He added that Professor Herz has showed how basic research in the field of lipoproteins can broaden the scope of science in an area where progress is needed to enhance treatment options for doctors and patients.

Last month, Boehringer Ingelheim reported that Morton Dahl of Herlev University Hospital and Simonetta Baraldo of Padova were the winners of the European Respiratory Society awards in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.