P. Michael Conneally facts for kids
P. Michael Conneally (born December 4, 1931 – died February 17, 2017) was a very important professor at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He was an expert in medical genetics, which is the study of how our genes affect our health. He helped find genes that cause diseases like Huntington's disease. He was also the first to use special DNA methods to find a human gene. He helped map about 20 human genes, which means he helped identify a big part of our human genetic map. He earned his first degree from University College Dublin and his advanced degrees from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
About Michael Conneally
Michael Conneally was born in Galway, Ireland on April 12, 1931. He went to University College Dublin on a scholarship. He graduated in 1954 with a degree in Agriculture. After college, he worked as an agriculture teacher in Ireland. He helped farmers with their work.
He then decided to get a master's degree. His teachers encouraged him to go to the United States. Many of his family members lived in Chicago, Illinois. So, he chose a school nearby. He went to the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1958. He earned his Master's and Ph.D. in Medical Genetics in 1962.
After that, Dr. Conneally spent two years in Cleveland. He worked with a group called the Hutterites. They are a community that often marries within their own group. This makes them interesting for genetic studies. In 1964, he came to the Indiana University School of Medicine. He became a professor there. A few years later, a new department was created for Medical and Molecular Genetics. Dr. Conneally was one of the first professors in this new department. Dr. Conneally passed away on February 17, 2017.
Awards and Achievements
Dr. Conneally received many awards for his important work.
- He was the president of the American Society of Human Genetics. This is a big group for scientists who study genes.
- He also helped with committees that used DNA to identify people. This included people from the World Trade Center event and Hurricane Katrina.
- He received the Milton Wexler Award.
- He also got the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society of Psychiatric Genetics.
- He wrote or helped write over 500 scientific papers.
- He was also an editor for five science magazines.
- In 1989, he received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.
- In 1991, he received the Irwin Research Award. This is the highest award for research at IUPUI.
