Biophysicist Eva Nogales, a senior faculty scientist in the Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, is a 2023 recipient of the Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine. Granted annually in the fields of astronomy, medicine and life sciences, and mathematical sciences, the international award recognizes outstanding academic and scientific contributions that advance societal progress, enhance quality of life, and enrich humanity’s spiritual civilization. Nogales, who is also a UC Berkeley distinguished professor of biochemistry, biophysics, and structural biology, shares the prize with Patrick Cramer of the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences in Germany. The pair were honored for pioneering structural biology techniques that enabled visualization of the protein machines responsible for gene transcription at the level of individual atoms. According to the citation, they revealed the mechanism underlying each step in gene transcription, how proper gene transcription promotes health, and how dysregulation causes disease.
