Andrew Goodman, the C.N.H. Long Professor of Microbial Pathogenesis and Director of the Microbial Sciences Institute (MSI), has received the 2020 John J. Abel Award in Pharmacology from the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET).
ASPET is a 5,000 member scientific society whose members conduct basic and clinical pharmacological research and work for academia, government, large pharmaceutical companies, small biotech companies, and non-profit organizations. Members’ research efforts help develop new medicines and therapeutic agents to fight existing and emerging diseases.
Goodman receives the award for his outstanding contributions to the study of the impact of the microbiome on drug metabolism “through the fearless use of cutting-edge high throughput genetic and chemical methods.”
The Goodman lab dissects the mechanisms that commensal gut microbes use to compete, cooperate, and antagonize each other in the gut, exploring how microbiome variation impacts our response to external perturbations, including pathogenic infection and medical drugs. It is becoming increasingly clear that variation in gut microbial communities has important consequences for health.
A faculty member since 2011, Goodman was one of the first investigators at Yale’s West Campus. His work has been recognized by the NIH Director’s Innovator award, the Pew and Burroughs Wellcome Foundations, and the White House. In 2019 he was named to head the MSI.
Microorganisms are vital for our health and prosperity, playing key roles as symbionts and pathogens, impacting agriculture and climate, and producing many products of medical and industrial value. Recent advances in genomic, cell imaging and computational techniques have revolutionized the broad field of microbial sciences, opening the door to exciting new avenues of research.
Located at West Campus, the Microbial Sciences Institute provides a central hub where students and faculty bring diverse perspectives and expertise to push the boundaries of microbiology.
The John J. Abel Award in Pharmacology was established in 1946 and named after the founder of ASPET.
By Jon Atherton