Carl H. June Awarded the Inaugural Maria I. New International Prize for Biomedical Research

NEW YORK, Nov. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Carl H. June, MD, an inventor of CAR T cell therapy for cancer—which has already led to FDA-approved treatments for lymphoma, leukemia, and multiple myeloma—was awarded the inaugural Maria I. New International Prize for Biomedical Research on Thursday, November 10, at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Chimeric antigen receptor T cell immunotherapy (CAR T), which Dr. June helped create, is a type of cancer therapy that harnesses the body's own immune system to fight cancer. T cells, a type of white blood cell, are removed from the patient and reprogrammed to recognize and attack cancer cells when returned to the body. Today, six CAR T cell therapies have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and clinical trials targeting many additional cancers are underway worldwide.

The prize is meant to honor medical pioneers in the tradition of Maria I. New, MD, a devoted member of the Mount Sinai community whose achievements have demonstrated her more than six decades of outstanding commitment to breakthrough research.

Over the past half-century, Dr. New has earned a reputation as one of the nation's leading pediatric endocrinologists. Her studies of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH)—a deficiency in the adrenal system that causes gender ambiguity in females and precocious sexual development in males—have led to treatments to correct the disorder before the baby is born. Her groundbreaking identification of a new form of hypertension, "apparent mineralcorticoid excess," has resulted in a new area of receptor biology.

The prize will be awarded annually to distinguished biomedical researchers for lifetime scientific achievements that have led, or may lead, to new ways to prevent and treat human disease. The award is generously supported by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author and economic historian Dr. Daniel Yergin, PhD, MA, and his wife, foreign policy expert Dr. Angela Stent, PhD, MS, MA.

The prize winners, who are selected by an international jury of prominent science community members, are awarded $20,000. The prize is administered by Mount Sinai's Center for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology, under the dedicated leadership of Mone Zaidi, MD, PhD, in conjunction with the Department of Pediatrics, Department of Medicine, and Department of Pharmacological Sciences. Dr. Zaidi, who chaired the jury that awarded the Maria I. New International Prize, is Director of the Center for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology, and the Mount Sinai Professor of Clinical Medicine. 

Dr. June is the Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Director of the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, and Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, all at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

Also see: Carl H. June Is Recipient of Inaugural Maria I. New International Prize for Biomedical Research

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is internationally renowned for its outstanding research, educational, and clinical care programs. It is the sole academic partner for the eight- member hospitals* of the Mount Sinai Health System, one of the largest academic health systems in the United States, providing care to a large and diverse patient population.

Ranked 14th nationwide in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding and among the 99th percentile in research dollars per investigator according to the Association of American Medical Colleges, Icahn Mount Sinai has a talented, productive, and successful faculty. More than 3,000 full-time scientists, educators, and clinicians work within and across 34 academic departments and 35 multidisciplinary institutes, a structure that facilitates tremendous collaboration and synergy. Our emphasis on translational research and therapeutics is evident in such diverse areas as genomics/big data, virology, neuroscience, cardiology, geriatrics, as well as gastrointestinal and liver diseases. 

Icahn Mount Sinai offers highly competitive MD, PhD, and Master's degree programs, with current enrollment of approximately 1,300 students. It has the largest graduate medical education program in the country, with more than 2,000 clinical residents and fellows training throughout the Health System. In addition, more than 550 postdoctoral research fellows are in training within the Health System. 

A culture of innovation and discovery permeates every Icahn Mount Sinai program. Mount Sinai's technology transfer office, one of the largest in the country, partners with faculty and trainees to pursue optimal commercialization of intellectual property to ensure that Mount Sinai discoveries and innovations translate into healthcare products and services that benefit the public.

Icahn Mount Sinai's commitment to breakthrough science and clinical care is enhanced by academic affiliations that supplement and complement the School's programs.

Through the Mount Sinai Innovation Partners (MSIP), the Health System facilitates the real-world application and commercialization of medical breakthroughs made at Mount Sinai. Additionally, MSIP develops research partnerships with industry leaders such as Merck & Co., AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk, and others.

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is located in New York City on the border between the Upper East Side and East Harlem, and classroom teaching takes place on a campus facing Central Park. Icahn Mount Sinai's location offers many opportunities to interact with and care for diverse communities. Learning extends well beyond the borders of our physical campus, to the eight hospitals of the Mount Sinai Health System, our academic affiliates, and globally.

* Mount Sinai Health System member hospitals: The Mount Sinai Hospital; Mount Sinai Beth Israel; Mount Sinai Brooklyn; Mount Sinai Morningside; Mount Sinai Queens; Mount Sinai South Nassau; Mount Sinai West; and New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai.

SOURCE Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai