Scientists have made great progress in determining why human bodies construct themselves the way they do from a molecular standpoint.

Joan Steitz, Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale University, presented the Joseph Priestley lecture on the topic of molecular structure, “Lupus and Snurps: Bench to Bedside and Back Again,” on Thursday, April 18.

This year the Biology Department decided the recipient of the Joseph Priestley Award. The committee of professors chose Steitz because they were impressed with her research. The Clarke Forum, Student Senate and various science departments co-sponsored Steitz’s visit.

“Steitz is one of the pioneering molecular biologists of the last half-century,” explained Associate Professor of Biology David Kushner in his introduction before she took the stage.

Kushner, who had seen her lecture in 1990 at the Japan Association for Mathematical Sciences Seminar, was greatly impacted by her work.
“It was fascinating to get to learn about biology at a level that we cannot see with thenaked eye,” he said.

After her research, Steitz started to teach microbiology to the next generation. Steitz’s lecture focused on how splicing RNA affected different genes and created mutations leading to lupus and other diseases.

“I liked how it was relevant to what we were learning in class. The idea of using complimentary RNAs to inhibit splicing events was interesting,” said Mohammed Masab ’13, a biology major.

In her research, Steitz found that by injecting certain strands of RNA, she was able to treat existing cases of the disease.

“To bring in a contemporary female scientist from a different generation in a field which was male-dominated during her time…It was really motivating,” said Antonio Marrero ’13, a biology major.

“It is interesting to see the development of her research progress. The application of the RNA research in the spinal muscular atrophy cases was new to me,” said Songhui Zhao ’13, a biology and neuroscience major.

The Priestley Award -named in honor of the man who discovered Oxygen, Joseph Priestley –is an award given annually by Dickinson College to a scientist who has contributed to the welfare of humanity.