On Monday, Jan. 8, The Wolf Foundation awarded the 2001 Wolf Prize for agriculture to Roger Beachy, of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, MO and James Womack of Texas A&M University in College Station, TX. The men were lauded for using recombinant DNA technology to revolutionize plant and animal sciences.
Beachy is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and is a recognized expert in plant virology and biotechnology of plants. Beachy pioneered the first method of protecting crops from viruses by incorporation of virus genes into the plant genome. His development of a virus-fighting gene built the base for other researchers to create their own forms of plant defenses.
Womack, also a member of the NAS, launched the discipline of livestock genomics with his initial map of the bovine genome. According to the Wolf Foundation, Womack’s work with cows signifies "a whole new generation of scientists will use techniques provided by Womack to clone the genes affecting economically important traits in mammals."
Five Wolf prizes are awarded annually to scientists and artists. Winners are chosen from such fields as agriculture, chemistry, mathematics, medicine, and physics. The prize will be presented May 13 in Israel.