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A professor of biochemistry at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (Geisinger Commonwealth) contributed to research that led to the Nobel Prize in Medicine awarded Oct. 2 to three U.S. researchers. The prize was awarded to Jeffrey Hall at the University of Maine, Michael Rosbash at Brandeis University and Michael Young at the Rockefeller University for their decades-long work on the circadian clock.

A scientific article published in the journal Cell, listing William Zehring, PhD, professor of biochemistry at Geisinger Commonwealth, as first author, was recognized as a “key publication” by the Nobel Prize committee. The article cited was P-element transformation with period locus DNA restores rhythmicity to mutant arrhythmic Drosophila melanogaster. The article identified a specific portion of the fruit fly’s DNA that controls rhythmic behaviors analogous to sleep and wakefulness, among others. This research was a critical step in verifying that scientists were working with the correct DNA sequence that restored rhythmicity to fruit flies lacking that capability due to a genetic mutation.

 

About Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (Geisinger Commonwealth) is a member of the Geisinger family. Geisinger Commonwealth offers a community-based model of medical education with campuses in Danville, Doylestown, Scranton, Sayre and Wilkes-Barre. Geisinger Commonwealth offers Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Master of Biomedical Sciences (MBS) degrees. The school’s innovative curriculum, focused on caring for people in the context of their lives and their community, attracts the next generation of physicians and scientists from within its region in northeastern and central Pennsylvania, as well as from across the state and the nation. The school also has over 440 graduate medical students in 24 residency programs and 19 accredited fellowships. Geisinger Commonwealth is committed to non-discrimination in all employment and educational opportunities. For more information, visit www.geisinger.edu/gcsom, or connect with us on FacebookInstagramLinkedIn and Twitter.

About Geisinger
Geisinger is committed to making better health easier for the more than 1 million people it serves. Founded more than 100 years ago by Abigail Geisinger, the system now includes 10 hospital campuses, a health plan with more than half a million members, a research institute and the Geisinger College of Health Sciences, which includes schools of medicine, nursing and graduate education. With more than 25,000 employees and 1,700+ employed physicians, Geisinger boosts its hometown economies in Pennsylvania by billions of dollars annually. Learn more at geisinger.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.

 
William Zehring
William Zehring, PhD

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