Over the winter holidays, Professor Robin Franklin of Cambridge Stem Cell Institute (CSCI) travelled to Saudi capital Riyadh to accept the King Faisal Prize for Medicine for his work in regenerative medicine for neurological conditions. He is a co-laureate for the prize alongside Professor Stephen Strittmatter from Yale University.
This prestigious award, launched in 1979 by the King Faisal Foundation, aims to celebrate contributions of institutions and individuals in five major categories. The Prize for Medicine was added as a category in 1981 and recognises original scientific research with major benefits to humanity. Many King Faisal Prize Laureates have also won the Nobel Prize.
On his achievement, Professor Franklin comments, “Winning the King Faisal Prize for Medicine is a huge honour and wonderful recognition of our work - the last Cambridge scientist to win it was the pioneering transplant surgeon Sir Roy Calne [in 2001]. The award has given renewed impetus to our work on understanding how adult stems cells change as we grow older and the implications these changes have for maintaining tissue health.”
At CSCI, The Franklin Lab studies Central Nervous System regeneration and focuses on remyelination, a process that is mediated by adult stem cells in which new myelin sheaths are restored to demyelinated axons. For practical applications, this research has the potential to benefit patients suffering from degenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
Watch a short film about Professor Franklin’s work and his acceptance speech from the ceremonies here or below.