The biannual Faculty Research Lecture is one of the highest honors bestowed by the UCLA Academic Senate for distinction in research.  For nine decades, the Faculty Research Lectures have presented the work of UCLA's most distinguished scholars to the campus community and the public.

A Delicate Balance:  Stem Cells, Cancer and the Immune Response

to be given by

Date: Thursday, November 8, 2007
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Location: Schoenberg Hall,

Schoenberg Music Building

Lecture Webcast: Please click here to watch

Reception immediately following the lecture at the Faculty Center.

RSVP for reception: (310) 794-6241 or specialevents@support.ucla.edu (please respond by Monday, October 29).

Professor Witte's Biography

Owen Witte received his undergraduate degree from Cornell and his MD from Stanford University where he trained with Irv Weissman.  He completed postdoctoral research at MIT in the laboratory of David Baltimore, then joined the faculty at UCLA where he presently is an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Distinguished Professor of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics where he holds the President's Chair in Developmental Immunology, and Professor of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.  He was named the Founding Director of the Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Medicine in 2005 which was recently renamed as the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA.

He has made significant contributions to the understanding of human leukemias, immune disorders, and epithelial cancer stem cells.  His work includes the discovery of tyrosine kinase activity for the ABL gene and the demonstration of the BCR-ABL oncoproteins in human leukemias.  This has had practical impact in leading to the development of kinase targeted therapy as an effective treatment for these leukemias and other cancers. His work also lead to the co-discovery of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase which is required for normal B-lymphocyte development, and when mutated leads to X-linked agammagloblulinemia, a form of immune deficiency.  Recent work has concentrated on defining the stem cells for epithelial cancers of the prostate and other organ sites to help define new types of therapy for these diseases.  His work utilizes advanced whole body imaging techniques like Positron Emission Tomography (PET) to monitor cancer growth and cellular immune functions.

Dr. Witte is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Institute of Medicine.  He has received recognition for his research including the Milken Foundation Award in Basic Cancer Research, the Rosenthal Award of the American Association for Cancer Research, the Dameshek Prize of the American Society of Hematology, the Alpert Foundation Prize, and The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s de Villiers International Achievement Award.  Dr. Witte currently serves on several editorial and advisory boards.