Gottfried Schatz
Encyclopedia
Austrians
Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent....
biochemist
Biochemist
Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. Typical biochemists study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. The prefix of "bio" in "biochemist" can be understood as a fusion of "biological chemist."-Role:...
. He played a leading role in elucidating the biogenesis of mitochondria and was a co-discoverer of mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA is the DNA located in organelles called mitochondria, structures within eukaryotic cells that convert the chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, adenosine triphosphate...
.
Life and career
Upon obtaining his PhD in chemistryChemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
at the University of Graz
University of Graz
The University of Graz , a university located in Graz, Austria, is the second-largest and second-oldest university in Austria....
(Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
), he did postdoctoral work at the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
and at "The Public Health Institute" of the City of New York. In 1968, he emigrated to the USA in order to assume a professorship Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in Ithaca
Ithaca
Ithaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Six years later, he returned to Europe in order to join the newly created Biocenter at the University of Basel
University of Basel
The University of Basel is located in Basel, Switzerland, and is considered to be one of leading universities in the country...
, which he chaired from 1983 to 1985, From 1984 to 1989 he was Secretary General of the European Molecular Biology Organization
European Molecular Biology Organization
EMBO stands for excellence in the life sciences. The EMBO mission is to enable the best science by supporting talented researchers, stimulating scientific exchange and advancing policies for a world-class European research environment....
(EMBO). After his retirement in 2000, he presided the Swiss Science and Technology Council (SSTC) until 2003. He is the author of more than 200 professional publications as well as of two books of essays on the broader implications of science. His scientific autobiography "Interplanetary travels" was published in 2000.
Honorary Memberships and Prizes
- 1967 Innitzer Prize
- 1983 Emil Christian HansenEmil Christian HansenEmil Christian Hansen was a Danish mycologist and fermentation physiologist.Born in Ribe, he financed his education by writing novels and he was awarded a gold medal in 1876 for an essay on fungi....
Gold Medal, Carlsberg Foundation - 1985 Honorary Member, Japanese Biochemical Society
- 1986 Member, German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
- 1986 Sir Hans Krebs Medal, FEBS
- 1987 Foreign Member, American Academy of Arts and SciencesAmerican Academy of Arts and SciencesThe American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
- 1988 Otto Warburg Medal, German Biochemical Society
- 1988 Member, Academia Europaea
- 1989 Foreign Associate, US National Academy of Sciences
- 1990 Louis-Jeantet Prize for MedicineLouis-Jeantet Prize for MedicineThe Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine is awarded annually by the Louis-Jeantet Foundation to biomedical researchers in Europe; the awards are made each April...
- 1991 Cross of Honor for Science and Arts, Republic of Austria
- 1993 Schleiden Medal, Deutsche Akademie Leopoldina
- 1993 Foreign Associate, Austrian Academy of SciencesAustrian Academy of SciencesThe Austrian Academy of Sciences is a legal entity under the special protection of the Federal Republic of Austria. According to the statutes of the Academy its mission is to promote the sciences and humanities in every respect and in every field, particularly in fundamental research...
- 1993 Prix Marcel BenoistMarcel Benoist PrizeThe Marcel Benoist Prize, offered by the Marcel Benoist Foundation, is a monetary prize that has been offered annually since 1920 to a scientist of Swiss nationality or residency who has made the most useful scientific discovery. Emphasis is placed on those discoveries affecting human life...
- 1994 Member, de:Nordrhein-Westfälische Akademie der Wissenschaften
- 1996 Honorary Doctorate, Comenius University in BratislavaComenius University in BratislavaComenius University in Bratislava is the largest university in Slovakia, with most of its faculties located in Bratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation of Czechoslovakia. It is named after Jan Amos Comenius, a 17th century Czech teacher and philosopher.In 2006, Comenius...
- 1997 Lynen Medal, University of MiamiUniversity of MiamiThe University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
, USA - 1997 Foreign Member, Royal Swedish Academy of SciencesRoyal Swedish Academy of SciencesThe Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences or Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien is one of the Royal Academies of Sweden. The Academy is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization which acts to promote the sciences, primarily the natural sciences and mathematics.The Academy was founded on 2...
- 1998 Gairdner AwardGairdner Foundation International AwardThe Gairdner Foundation International Award is given annually at a special dinner to three to six people for outstanding discoveries or contributions to medical science. Receipt of the Gairdner is traditionally considered a precursor to winning the Nobel Prize in Medicine; as of 2007, 69 Nobel...
, Toronto - 1998 Foreign Member, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van WetenschappenRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and SciencesThe Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences is an organisation dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands...
- 2000 Silver Medal of Merit, Republic of Austria
- 2000 Honorary Doctorate, Stockholm UniversityStockholm UniversityStockholm University is a state university in Stockholm, Sweden. It has over 28,000 students at four faculties, making it one of the largest universities in Scandinavia. The institution is also frequently regarded as one of the top 100 universities in the world...
- 2000 Wilson MedalE. B. Wilson MedalThe American Society for Cell Biology's highest honor for science, the E.B. Wilson Medal is presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for significant and far-reaching contributions to cell biology over the course of a career. It is named after Edmund Beecher Wilson.- Medalists :The following...
, American Society of Cell Biology - 2004 Antonio Feltrinelli International PrizeAntonio Feltrinelli PrizeThe Antonio Feltrinelli Prize is a prestigious award for achievement in the arts, music, literature, history, philosophy, medicine, and physical and mathematical sciences. The award comes with a monetary grant, a certificate, and a gold medal. The prize is awarded once every five years in each...
, Rome - 2006 Reinach Prize
- 2008 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of ScienceAmerican Association for the Advancement of ScienceThe American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting scientific education and science outreach for the...
- 2009 Austrian Decoration for Science and Art
- 2009 European Prize for Culture in Science, European Foundation for Culture «Pro Europa»
Books for a general audience
- Gottfried Schatz: Feuersucher: Die Jagd nach dem Geheimnis der Lebensenergie - NZZ Buchverlag, Zürich, 2011 - ISBN 3038236772
- Gottfried Schatz: A Matter of Wonder. What Biology Reveals about Us, Our World, and Our Dreams (Translated by A. Shields). S. Karger AG, Basel, 2011 – ISBN 978-3-8055-9744-9
- Gottfried Schatz: Jeff’s View on Science and Scientists,. Elsevier BV/FEBS 2006 - ISBN 978-0-444-52133-0
- Gottfried Schatz: Jenseits der Gene. Essays über unser Wesen, unsere Welt und unsere Träume, NZZ Libro, 2008 - ISBN 978-3038234531; Audio Version on CD: Kein & Aber, 2008 - ISBN 978-3036912462
- Gottfried Schatz: Die Welt in der wir leben: Ein Biologe über unser Wesen, unsere Träume und den Grund der Dinge - Herder, 2010 - ISBN 3451057921