Lydia Villa-Komaroff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lydia Villa-Komaroff
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Lydia Villa-Komaroff in 2013
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| Born | August 7, 1947 |
| Citizenship | American |
| Alma mater | Goucher College (BA) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD) |
| Spouse(s) | Anthony L. Komaroff |
| Awards | 2013 Woman of Distinction by the American Association of University Women |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Molecular Biology |
| Institutions | MIT, Harvard University, Northwestern University |
| Doctoral advisor | Harvey Lodish, David Baltimore |
| Other academic advisors | Fotis Kafatos, Tom Maniatis, Walter Gilbert |
Lydia Villa-Komaroff (born August 7, 1947) is a talented scientist who has worked as a molecular and cellular biologist. She has also been a university leader and a business person. She was one of the first Mexican-American women in the United States to earn a doctorate degree in science (in 1975). She also helped start The Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). Her most famous discovery happened in 1978. She was part of a team that found a way to use tiny bacteria cells to make insulin. This was a huge step forward for medicine!
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Early Life and Family
Lydia Villa-Komaroff was born on August 7, 1947, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She grew up there as the oldest of six children. Her father, John, was a teacher and a musician. Her mother, Drucilla, worked as a social worker.
From a young age, Lydia knew she wanted to be a scientist. By the time she was nine, she was sure of it. Her uncle, who was a chemist, helped inspire her. Her mother and grandmother also loved nature and plants, which encouraged Lydia's interest in science.
Education and Career Journey
In 1965, Lydia started college at the University of Washington in Seattle. She planned to study chemistry. However, an advisor told her that "women do not belong in chemistry." Because of this, she changed her major to biology.
In 1967, she moved to Goucher College in Maryland. This was because her boyfriend moved to the Washington, D.C. area to work at the National Institutes of Health. In 1970, she married her boyfriend, Dr. Anthony L. Komaroff. They then moved to Boston.
Studying Molecular Biology
In 1970, Villa-Komaroff began her graduate studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She focused on molecular biology. For her PhD, she studied how proteins are made from RNA in the poliovirus. Her advisors were Harvey Lodish and Nobel laureate David Baltimore. She thanked her colleagues and advisors for teaching her so much.
While still a student at MIT in 1973, she helped create the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). This group supports Hispanic and Native American scientists.
She earned her PhD in cell biology from MIT in 1975. After that, she went to Harvard for three years to do postdoctoral research. She worked on a new technology called recombinant DNA. This involves combining DNA from different sources.
Overcoming Challenges in Research
In 1976, the city of Cambridge temporarily stopped these types of experiments. People were worried about public safety and accidentally creating new diseases. So, Villa-Komaroff moved to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. There, her experiments often failed. These failures taught her an important lesson: "most experiments fail, and that scientists must accept failure as a part of the process." This helped her become a stronger scientist.
Six months after the ban was lifted in 1977, she returned to Harvard. She joined the lab of Nobel laureate Walter Gilbert. Within half a year, she was the lead author on a major report. Her team showed that bacteria could be made to produce proinsulin. This was the first time a human hormone was made by bacteria! This discovery was a huge step for the new biotechnology industry.
Becoming a Professor and Leader
Later that year, she became a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS). She taught there for six years. Then, she moved to Harvard Medical School. This new role gave her more time for research. She studied how certain growth factors affect development in babies. Her work was featured in a 1995 TV show called "DNA Detective." It was part of a PBS series about women in science.
In 1996, Villa-Komaroff left laboratory research. She became the vice president for Research at Northwestern University. In 2003, she returned to Boston. She became the Vice President for Research and Chief Operating Officer at the Whitehead Institute. This is a research center linked with MIT. Since 2005, she has worked as a leader and board member for several biotechnology companies. She also serves on many important boards and committees.
Research Discoveries and Accomplishments
After her breakthrough in making insulin with bacteria, Villa-Komaroff used recombinant DNA technology to answer many important questions in science. She worked with experts in different fields, like brain scientists and developmental biologists.
Understanding Vision Development
Her lab made important discoveries about how vision develops in young animals. Other scientists knew that vision development in cats was delayed if they were raised in darkness. They also knew that even a short time in light could start vision development. Villa-Komaroff's lab showed that just one hour of light made three specific proteins increase in dark-raised cats. This showed a direct link between these genes and light in developing vision.
Nerve Cell Growth and Alzheimer's Research
Her lab also found direct proof that a protein called Gap-43 protein is important for the growth of nerve cell parts called axons.
Finally, Villa-Komaroff helped discover that a molecule linked to Alzheimer's disease, called amyloid beta, can harm brain cells. Before her work, scientists weren't sure if amyloid beta caused brain damage or was just a side effect. Her research was the first to show that a part of this protein could kill neurons (brain cells). This discovery helped start a huge field of research focused on preventing and treating Alzheimer's disease by targeting amyloid beta.
Awards and Honors
Lydia Villa-Komaroff has received many awards and honors for her important work:
- Fellow of the Association for Women in Science
- 1992 Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Award
- 1999 Induction into the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Hall of Fame
- 2008 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
- 2008 Hispanic Scientist of the Year, Museum of Science and Industry (Tampa)
- 2013 Woman of Distinction, American Association of University Women (AAUW)
- 2015 Distinguished Women Scientist, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
- 2017 Honorary Co-Chair, March for Science
Past and Current Leadership Roles
Lydia Villa-Komaroff has held many important leadership roles throughout her career:
- Founding member, Board member, and Vice President of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS)
- Vice President for Research at Northwestern University (1998-2002)
- Board of Directors for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2001-2005)
- Chief Operating Officer & Vice President for Research at Whitehead Institute (2003-2005)
- Chief Executive Officer at Transkaryotic Therapies (2005)
- Chief Executive Officer at Cytonome/ST (2006-2009)
- Chair, Board of Trustees, Pine Manor College (2007)
- Member of the Board, ATCC (company)
- Member of the Board of Trustees, Keck Graduate Institute of the Claremont Colleges Consortium
- Vice President, Biomedical Science Careers Program
