Schimmel is both a knowledge-maker and a teacher, with an appointment as Professor of Molecular Medicine and of Chemistry at The Scripps Research Institute. Prior to that, he was MacArthur Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at MIT.
He is widely considered a translational medicine pioneer, developing genetic sequencing approaches that were later adopted for the human genome project. He is the author or coauthor of over 500 scientific research publications and a widely used textbook on biophysical chemistry, and is a cofounder or founding director of several enterprises that have developed FDA-approved medicines building on his academic research. Just one of these medicines has, it is estimated, saved over 800,000 lives.
From undergraduate to graduate studies
In his role at The Scripps Research Institute, Schimmel served as Professor Haissi Cui’s postdoctoral supervisor.
Cui said the two had initially been discussing a donation in direct support of her U of T research when the possibility of endowing a scholarship came up. “I wondered if it would be more meaningful to make it into an award.”
She is delighted with the result of that conversation: “It’s really nice because the award is for research which is in the tradition of Paul’s research, so there’s a connection right away. It’s also another reason for students applying here to read his papers.”
Shi’s research career at U of T shows how such research bonds, once formed, can be powerful. She and Schimmel have already been two of the co-authors on a paper, Metabolic Regulation of mRNA Splicing, in Trends in Cell Biology.
“The transition from undergraduate to graduate studies was initially challenging,” she said. “As an undergraduate, I benefited from hands-on guidance by great mentors in the chemistry department, who taught me the fundamentals of research.”
“As a graduate student conducting research more independently while balancing coursework, I really appreciate the continual help and encouragement from my lab mates and supervisor, whose support has helped me build the skills and confidence required for my Ph.D.”
In support of research
Shi says the scholarship will support research to further understand the role of SRRM2 in RNA splicing and its trafficking within nuclear condensates.
