On September 1–3, Vilnius University (VU) will host one of the most prominent contemporary molecular biologists and a pioneer of bioinformatics – Nobel Prize laureate in Physiology or Medicine, Sir Richard John Roberts. His visit to Lithuania is part of the series of events celebrating the 50th anniversary of modern biotechnology in the country.
During the visit, the distinguished scientist will meet with VU Rector Prof. Rimvydas Petrauskas, Vice-Rector for Research Prof. Gintaras Valušis, and researchers and students of the Life Sciences Center (LSC). He will also take part in several public events open to the wider community.
On September 3 at 11:00 a.m., at the VU Life Sciences Center (Saulėtekio Ave. 7, Auditorium 106), R. J. Roberts will deliver a public lecture The Road to the Nobel Prize. This will be a unique opportunity to hear his inspiring story of choosing a profession and a scientific path. While at school, he dreamed of becoming a professional detective and was fascinated by mathematics, but during his chemistry studies, John Kendrew’s book “The Thread of Life” inspired him to pursue molecular biology.
According to the Nobel laureate, success in science is inseparable from failure, and true innovation emerges when one dares to question what is already known. In his lecture, he will also discuss his most important and recent discoveries, the beginnings of bioinformatics, and why fundamental science is essential for commercial research.
Following the lecture, at 12:00 p.m., a public discussion will take place on Breakthroughs in Biotechnology: How Do They Emerge and How Do They Change Our Lives? Nobel laureate R. J. Roberts will be joined by Prof. Virginijus Šikšnys – one of the pioneers of CRISPR genome editing technology, Dr. Linas Mažutis – developer of advanced microfluidics technologies, Prof. Arvydas Janulaitis – founder of the Future of Biomedicine Fund, and Vice-Minister of Health Danielius Naumovas.
The discussion will focus on global biotechnology trends, explore the drivers behind Lithuania’s breakthrough in this field, and consider how gene-editing tools will transform the treatment of cancer, genetic, immune, infectious, and other diseases in the near future. The discussion will be moderated by journalist and TV host Edmundas Jakilaitis.
R. J. Roberts’ name is inscribed in the history of science thanks to a discovery that radically changed our understanding of genes and genetic information. In his 1977 publication, he showed that the genes of eukaryotic cells (human, animal, plant, etc.) contain so-called introns (DNA sequences that do not code for proteins), and that their removal (the splicing process) is an essential part of gene expression. This means that one gene can produce several different proteins, and gene expression is far more complex than previously thought. For this revolutionary discovery, in 1993 R. J. Roberts, together with his colleague Phillip A. Sharp, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Another important direction of R. J. Roberts’ research at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (USA) was the study of restriction–modification enzymes – proteins that became essential tools in the early days of genetic engineering. Thanks to these enzymes, recombinant DNA technologies advanced rapidly, paving the way for the emergence of biotechnology companies such as Fermentas and New England Biolabs. This line of research in Lithuania has since been further developed by VU LSC Professor Saulius Klimašauskas, who trained in R. J. Roberts’ laboratory and contributed to discoveries of global significance in the field of DNA-modifying enzymes.
Currently, R. J. Roberts works at the U.S. company New England Biolabs, which produces and supplies reagents for life sciences research, as well as products and services supporting genome editing, synthetic biology, and next-generation sequencing.