Harvey J. Alter
Harvey J. Alter | |
---|---|
Born | Harvey James Alter September 12, 1935 New York City, New York, U.S. |
Education | University of Rochester (BA, MD) Nobel Prize for Medicine (2020) |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Virology |
Harvey James Alter (born September 12, 1935) is an American
Alter has received recognition for the research leading to the discovery of the virus that causes
Early life and education
Alter was born in New York City
Career
Alter has a medical license issued by the District of Columbia. Additionally he holds certification by the American Board of Pathology blood banking subspecialty and is a fellow of the American College of Physicians.[5] Clinical appointments include: director, hematology research at Georgetown University Hospital from July 1966 to June 1969; senior investigator in the Department of Transfusion Medicine at the NIH from July 1969 to present; chief of infectious diseases section at the department of transfusion medicine in the Clinical Center NIH from December 1972 to present; associate director for research at the department of transfusion medicine at the Clinical Center at NIH from January 1987 to present.[5]
Alter's academic appointments include: clinical associate professor of medicine at Georgetown University Hospital; adjunct professor at
Alter came to the NIH Clinical Center as a senior investigator in 1969.[12] He remains at the NIH as a chief of the infectious diseases section and associate director of research in the department of transfusion medicine.[13]
Medical research
As a young research fellow in 1964, Alter co-discovered the
In the mid-1970s, Alter and his research team demonstrated that most post-transfusion hepatitis cases were not due to hepatitis A and hepatitis B viruses. Work by Alter, in collaboration with Bob Purcell, and work by Edward Tabor working simultaneously in another laboratory,[16] proved through transmission studies in chimpanzees that a new form of hepatitis, initially called "non-A, non-B hepatitis" caused the infections. This work eventually led to the discovery of the hepatitis C virus. In 1988 the new hepatitis virus was confirmed by Alter's group by verifying its presence in their stored panel of NANBH specimens.[17] In April 1989, the discovery of the non-A, non-B virus, renamed hepatitis C virus, was published in two articles in Science.[18][19][20]
Honors and awards
Alter has received recognition for his research including the 2000
Speaking of Alter's long research career at the time of the 2000 Lasker Award, Harvey Klein, chief of the Clinical Center Transfusion Medicine Department noted, "As a young research fellow, Dr. Alter co-discovered the Australia antigen, a key to detecting Hepatitis B virus. For many investigators that would be the highlight of a career. For Dr. Alter it was only an auspicious beginning."[22]
Alter was awarded Grand Hamdan International Award - Gastroenterology by Hamdan Medical Award in 2016.
Alter was awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine alongside
Personal life
He married Barbara Bailey; they have two children, Mark, also an MD, and Stacey, a teacher. He is currently married to Diane Dowling and has two step children, Lydia Rodin and Erinn Torres, and nine grandchildren.[7]
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7637-8047-0.
- ^ a b "Press release: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2020". Nobel Foundation. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- ^ Wu, Katherine J.; Victor, Daniel (October 5, 2020). "Nobel Prize in Medicine Awarded to Scientists Who Discovered Hepatitis C Virus - Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice were jointly honored for their decisive contribution to the fight against blood-borne hepatitis, a major global health problem". The New York Times. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
- ^ a b "The Lasker Foundation". Archived from the original on February 25, 2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Harvey J. Alter Curriculum Vitae". Archived from the original on September 4, 2005. Retrieved April 21, 2006.
- ^ Henrichsen, Colleen (September 21, 2000). "NIH Clinical Center scientist a Lasker Award recipient". Press release. NIH. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
- ^ S2CID 30040670.
- ^ "Rochester graduate awarded 2020 Nobel Prize for 'landmark achievement' against hepatitis". NewsCenter. October 5, 2020. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- ^ Freile, Victoria E. (October 6, 2020). "UR graduate Harvey Alter awarded Nobel Prize in fight against Hepatitis". Democrat and Chronicle. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
- ^ National Institutes of Health (U.S.). Clinical Center (1958). Report of program activities: National Institutes of Health. Clinical Center. NIH Library. Bethesda, Md. : The Center.
- PMID 18809775.
- ^ a b "Principal Investigators". NIH Intramural Research Program. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- ^ "Jewish Physician Among Winners Of Nobel Prize For Medicine". Voz Iz Neias. October 5, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
- ^ "The NIH Almanac". Department of Health and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. June 4, 2009. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
- ^ "2005 NIH profile". Archived from the original on March 29, 2006. Retrieved April 21, 2006.
- S2CID 27675695.
- ^ "Alter.pdf" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2007.
- PMID 26668691.
- PMID 2496467.
- PMID 2523562.
- ^ "Prof. Harvey J Alter". Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Medical Sciences. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
- ^ "Clinical Center News October 2000". Archived from the original on November 30, 2006. Retrieved April 21, 2006.
Further reading
- Harvey J. Alter on Nobelprize.org
- 2000 Awards Presentation of Clinical Award by Leon Rosenberg The Lasker Foundation Award Winners, Clinical Medical Research