Michael Rosbash facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Michael Rosbash
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Michael Rosbash in Nobel Prize press conference in Stockholm, December 2017
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Michael Morris Rosbash
March 7, 1944 Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
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| Alma mater | California Institute of Technology (BS) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MS, PhD) |
| Spouse(s) | Nadja Abovich |
| Awards | Gruber Prize in Neuroscience (2009) Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2017) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Genetics Chronobiology |
| Institutions | University of Edinburgh Brandeis University Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
| Thesis | Membrane-bound protein synthesis in hela cells (1971) |
| Doctoral advisor | Sheldon Penman |
Michael Morris Rosbash, born on March 7, 1944, is an American scientist. He studies genetics and chronobiology, which is the study of how living things keep track of time. Rosbash is a professor and researcher at Brandeis University. He also works as an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
Rosbash is famous for his work on how living things keep track of time. This is like our own internal "biological clock" that controls when we sleep and wake up. In 2017, he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He shared this important award with Michael W. Young and Jeffrey C. Hall. They discovered how tiny parts inside our bodies control these daily rhythms, also known as circadian rhythms.
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About Michael Rosbash
Michael Rosbash was born in Kansas City, Missouri. His parents, Hilde and Alfred Rosbash, were Jewish refugees. They had to leave Nazi Germany in 1938. His father was a cantor, a person who leads singing in Jewish worship services. When Michael was two years old, his family moved to Boston. He has been a big fan of the Boston Red Sox baseball team ever since.
At first, Michael was interested in math. But a biology class at Caltech changed his mind. Working in a lab during the summer also made him want to study biology. Rosbash graduated from Caltech in 1965 with a degree in chemistry. He then spent a year in Paris on a Fulbright Scholarship. In 1970, he earned his doctoral degree in biophysics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
After finishing his studies, Rosbash spent three years at the University of Edinburgh. In 1974, he joined the faculty at Brandeis University. Rosbash is married to Nadja Abovich, who is also a scientist. He has a stepdaughter named Paula and a daughter named Tanya.
Discoveries About Our Body Clocks
Rosbash's early research looked at how mRNA works. mRNA is like a messenger molecule that carries instructions from our DNA to make proteins. After joining Brandeis University, Rosbash started working with his colleague Jeffrey C. Hall. They wanted to understand how genes affect our internal biological clocks.
They used tiny fruit flies, called Drosophila melanogaster, to study patterns of activity and rest. These flies are great for studying genes because they have a short life cycle.
The Period Gene and the Feedback Loop
In 1984, Rosbash and Hall found the first "clock gene" in Drosophila. They called it the period gene. Later, they found that the amount of period mRNA and its protein (PER) changed throughout the day. This change followed the fly's daily rhythm.
In 1990, they suggested a model called the Transcription Translation Negative Feedback Loop (TTFL). This model explained how the period gene and its protein work together to create the daily rhythm. Basically, the PER protein builds up and then tells the gene to stop making more protein. This creates a cycle of rising and falling protein levels, like a clock ticking.
Finding More Clock Genes
After this, they kept looking for other parts of the clock.
- In 1998, Rosbash and his team found the Drosophila Clock gene. This gene helps turn on the period and timeless genes.
- In the same year, they also discovered the cycle gene in Drosophila. This gene works with the Clock gene to control the daily rhythm.
- Also in 1998, they found that a protein called cryptochrome helps fruit flies sense light. This light sensing is important for setting their internal clock.
How Neurons Control the Clock
Scientists also found that certain brain cells, called lateral neurons (LNs), are important for circadian rhythms in fruit flies. Rosbash's team showed that a specific group of these neurons, called LNV neurons, are the main "pacemakers" for the fly's daily clock. They found that a signal from these neurons, called PDF, helps control the fly's activity.
Current Research
Today, Rosbash continues to study how different brain cells are involved in circadian rhythms. He has found that different groups of neurons respond to light in different ways. Some cells are sensitive to dawn and promote being awake. Other cells are sensitive to dusk and help promote sleep. His work helps us understand how our brains control our daily cycles.
Important Roles and Honors
Michael Rosbash has held many important positions and received several awards for his scientific work.
Positions Held
- Director of the Brandeis National Center for Behavioral Genomics
- The Inaugural Peter Gruber Endowed Chair in Neuroscience
- Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (since 1989)
- Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2007)
- Member of the National Academy of Sciences (2003)
- Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1997)
- Guggenheim Fellow (1989–1990)
- Fulbright Fellow (1965–1966)
Awards Received
- Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2017)
- Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences (2013)
- Massry Prize (2012)
- Canada Gairdner International Award (2012)
- Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize from Columbia University (2011)
- Gruber Prize in Neuroscience (2009)
- Caltech Distinguished Alumni Award (2001)
See also
In Spanish: Michael Rosbash para niños
- Circadian rhythm
- Circadian clock
- Period (gene)
- List of Jewish Nobel laureates
