21st Century Corps of Discovery Lecture
Heart-Healthy Pork, Pig Organs for Humans and Green Eggs and Ham: How Pigs Can Benefit You
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
4 p.m. in Monsanto Auditorium, Bond Life Sciences Center
Reception to follow
Steve Morse photo
This year’s honored speaker is Curators Professor Randall S. Prather, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. He and his research team have made international news numerous times for their work in genetics, most recently being featured in Discover magazine as having one of the top science stories in 2006 for being the first in the world to create pigs that produce their own omega-3 fatty acids.
Just as Lewis and Clark’s exploration of the Louisiana Purchase territory opened new frontiers, basic studies of cellular and molecular biology are expanding the frontiers of biology. Often it is assumed that a better understanding of biology applies narrowly to the real world. However, advances in agriculture, for example, have a direct impact on human medicine and vice versa. Development of problem-solving tools in one area often leads to solutions in other areas.
Cutting-edge techniques to clone pigs, in combination with a greater understanding of molecular biology and the genome, have led to precise genetic modifications of pigs. This breakthrough may result in pig organs that could be transferred to humans, models of human disease, disease-resistant pigs, pharmaceuticals and a more nutritious pork chop. Just as Lewis and Clark opened the frontier to the West, discoveries in the biological sciences will allow scientists to find new ways to use pigs for the benefit of humankind.
This isn’t the first time that Prather and his group appeared on Discover’s list of top science stories. The researchers also received mention in the magazine’s 2002 list for their efforts to clone pigs whose organs could be transplanted into humans. Popular Science described it as the most significant advance in medical technology that year.
Prather’s research as principal or co-principal investigator has been funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S. Department of Agriculture and several biotechnology firms, among others. Prather holds eight U.S. patents and has submitted tens of thousands of genetic sequences to GenBank, the NIH’s genetic sequence database. He has received the Missouri Biotechnology Association’s Excellence in Life Science Award and the University of Missouri System’s Presidential Faculty Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He sits on the editorial boards of Molecular Reproduction and Development, Xenotransplantation and Cloning & Stem Cells. Prather joined the faculty of the MU animal sciences department in 1989. He currently serves as co-director of the National Swine Research and Resource Center.
The 21st Century Corps of Discovery lecture is held annually on the MU campus and commemorates the contributions of Lewis and Clark by featuring an outstanding MU professor and discoverer who will inspire and bring together the University community at the beginning of each academic year. Reinforcing “discovery,” one of the University's core values, the lecture is intended to represent MU’s diverse academics in science, art, humanities, law, medicine, engineering, education, journalism and business.
