Gabriel Rabinovich received the “National Researcher Award 2017”
The researcher of the Council was awarded for producing new knowledge, generating finds with social impact and promoting human resources training.
At the Museo de la Casa Rosada, Gabriel Rabinovich, senior researcher of the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) and vice director at the Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental (IBYME, CONICET-FIBYME), was awarded the Investigador de la Nación Argentina edición 2016 [National Researcher Award 2016].
The National Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation, through the Secretaría de Planeamiento y Políticas en Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, awards the work of the scientific and technological sector. The objective is to strengthen and order hierarchically the community of Argentine scientists by acknowledging those who along their careers have contributed with new knowledge, finds with social impact, development of technological innovations with productive impact and the boost of the training of human resources.
At the same ceremony, other awards were given: the Houssay, the Jorge Sábato, and Houssay Trayectoria 2016. The National Researcher Award is chosen by the Executive Power from all the awardees.
The Argentine President, Mauricio Macri, stated: “All Argentines are very proud of you because of your vocation for work, curiosity, aptitude, and the most important: enthusiasm and responsibility. All the conditions needed more than ever to face this new stage in which the world changes so quickly and in unthinkable ways.”
“We have a lot to provide, and for that purpose, this group of scientists, each with their own careers, their finds, areas of knowledge; they are all part of the asset of our country. The development of science is essential to have a more united country, integrated and with less poverty and more opportunities. It is an engine of development that sometimes can be seen as something that remains in a laboratory but it’s more than that because it impacts on people’s everyday life”, Macri said.
The Minister of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation, Lino Barañao, was present and said: “This award involves social responsibility because the researcher’s career was funded by the society, with the State’s resources and this represents an ethical debt from the scientist to the community. Science and Technology should serve the economical and social development.”
As regards Rabinovich, the Minister remarked “apart from working on his and his team’s academic performance, the researcher is concerned about the country and the development of Argentine science. He proves that there are no contradictions between basic and applied science.”
Eng. Jorge Aguado, the Secretary of Planning and Policies on Science, Technology and Productive Innovation, explained that “this is the way in which the Science Ministry awards the production of new knowledge, transfer of technological developments and the training of highly skilled human resources.”
The officials that attended the ceremony were: the president of the CONICET, Alejandro Ceccatto; the vice president of Scientific Affairs, Mirtha Flawiá; and Dora Barrancos and Graciela Ciccia, both directors of the Council. From the Science Ministry, the Secretary of “Articulación Científico Tecnológica”, Agustín Campero; and the undersecretary of Institutional Coordination, Sergio Matheos were present. Besides, some officials, members of the national cabinet of the Argentine Congress, authorities of public and private universities, and organisms and scientific institutions attended the event.
About Gabriel Rabinovich
Rabinovich studied at the Universidad Nacional de Córdoba and is a recognized expert at glycobiology, immunology and tumor biology. Along his career, he managed to identify the function of Galectin-1, a protein that proved to have a key role in inflammatory mechanisms and in pathologies such as cancer, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
At the IBYME, the researcher leads the Laboratory on Immunopathology and Functional Glycomics. He is a full professor at the Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales de la Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA) and a visiting professor at foreign universities.
He is a member of different International scientific institutions. This year he was appointed as a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Rabinovich has published more than 200 scientitifc studies in leading journals such as Cell, Nature Medicine, Nature Immunology and Cancer Cell. He managed to become part of the editorial board of thirteen scientific journals.
This year he was awarded by the government of the province of Córdoba. He received the “Brigadier General Juan Bautista Bustos” for his contributions to progress, welfare, culture and well understanding and solidarity in the province. He also organized the Simposio “Inmunoterapia: la revolución en el tratamiento del cáncer”, in which important Argentine and foreign researchers and physicians participated.
In 2016, he was chosen by the Revista Noticias as the “argentino del año en la ciencia and received the title Honoris Causa at the Universidad Católica de Córdoba. In 2015, the Legislature of Buenos Aires city awarded him as a personalidad destacada de la ciencia.
He received the following prizes: TWAS in Medical Sciences; the Fundación Bunge y Born for his career and the “Encouragement to Young Researchers”; the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship; the Cancer Research Institute Award (New York), the Bernardo Houssay Bicentenario Award for young researchers and the Konex Platinum 2013 in Basic Biomedical Sciences 2013, among others.
Recently, the scientist has become part of the new international consortium to work on AIDS-related tumors. Financed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the consortium comprises five nodes: the University of Miami, IBYME, Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE, CONICET-UBA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNLP) and Fundación Huésped.