Karla Rubio receives Behring-Röntgen talent award

Max Planck researcher honored for "outstanding" research on lung fibrosis

Dr. Karla Rubio vom Max-Planck-Institut für Herz- und Lungenforschung in Bad Nauheim ist von der Behring-Röntgen Stiftung für ihre herausragende Arbeit in der medizinischen Forschung mit dem Nachwuchspreis der Stiftung ausgezeichnet worden.

Dr. Karla Rubio of the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research in Bad Nauheim was awarded by the Behring-Röntgen foundation for her outstanding work in medical research with the Foundation's Young Investigator Award.

As part of her dissertation, the Mexican-born researcher had gained important insights into so-called idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. In the course of this mostly fatal disease, the tissue in the lung, which is necessary for gas exchange, is increasingly destroyed. The 34-year-old biologist was able to show a new mechanism of the disease. Now she hopes that this will benefit patients in the future: "By using state-of-the-art molecular biology techniques, I was able to identify key molecules that could be an approach for new effective therapies," says Rubio.

The prizewinner came to the MPI in Bad Nauheim in 2012 and has since been researching in the independent research group "Epigenetics of Lung Tumors" by Professor Guillermo Barreto. Previously, she had studied Biomedical Sciences in Puebla, Mexico. The results of her research have already been published in high-level journals.

The Behring-Röntgen Foundation wants to support the career of junior scientists in the field of medicine with this research prize worth 5000 Euro: "We see it as one of our most important tasks to support excellent young scientists in their first years of research. During this time, the course will be set for the scientific career, "said Foundation President Friedrich Bohl. "The awards given by our foundation since 2009 should be both recognition and motivation."

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