Richard Axel
Encyclopedia
Richard Axel is an American
neuroscientist
whose work on the olfactory system
won him and Linda B. Buck
, a former post-doctoral scientist in his research group, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
in 2004.
In their landmark paper published in 1991, Buck and Axel cloned
olfactory receptor
s, showing that they belong to the family of G protein coupled receptors
. By analyzing rat
DNA
, they estimated that there were approximately one thousand different gene
s for olfactory receptors in the mammal
ian genome
. This research opened the door to the genetic
and molecular
analysis of the mechanisms of olfaction
. In their later work, Buck and Axel have shown that each olfactory receptor neuron
remarkably only expresses one kind of olfactory receptor protein and that the input from all neurons expressing the same receptor is collected by a single dedicated glomerulus
of the olfactory bulb
.
in 1963, received his A.B. in 1967 from Columbia University
, and his M.D. in 1971 from Johns Hopkins University
. He returned to Columbia later that year and became a full professor in 1978.
Axel is known to be a great aficionado of opera. Axel attended Joan Sutherland
's debut performance of La Traviata
at the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company
in 1964 with his high school friend Jerold Brenowitz, who later became a heart surgeon. Owing to his tall stature, Axel played basketball during high school, when he reportedly allowed the opposing team's center, 'Lew' Alcindor
to score 50 points; 'Lew' Alcindor, who later changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, went on to become the leading scorer in the history of the NBA.
During the late 1970s, Axel, along with microbiologist
Saul J. Silverstein, and geneticist Michael H. Wigler, discovered a technique of cotransformation
, a process which allows foreign DNA to be inserted into a host cell to produce certain proteins. Patent
s, now colloquially referred to as the "Axel patents", covering this technique were filed for February 1980 and were issued in August 1983. As a fundamental process in recombinant DNA research as performed at pharmaceutical and biotech
companies, this patent proved quite lucrative for Columbia University, earning it almost $100 million a year at one time, and a top spot on the list of top universities by licensing revenue. The Axel patents expired in August 2000. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 1983.
Axel's primary research interest is on how the brain interprets the sense of smell, specifically mapping the parts of the brain that are sensitive to specific olfactory receptors. He holds the titles of University Professor
at Columbia University
, Professor of Biochemistry
and Molecular Biophysics
and of Pathology
at Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
. In addition to contributions to neurobiology, Axel has also made seminal discoveries in immunology, and his lab was one of the first to identify the link between HIV infection and immunoreceptor CD4.
Axel is married to fellow scientist and olfaction pioneer Cornelia "Cori" Bargmann
.
Axel's ex wife is Ann Axel. Ann Axel, M.S.W., was born in 1947 to Norman and Winifred Cotrell. Ann Axel attended Barnard College, and later the Hunter School of Social Work. She specializes in psychiatry, and is a celebrated social worker at Columbia Eastside, affiliated with Columbia University Medical Center in Manhattan.
Axel is a friend of fellow Columbia neuroscientist, Charles Zuker
.
In addition to making contributions as a scientist, Axel has also mentored many leading scientists in the field of neurobiology. Seven of his trainees have become members of the national academy of sciences, and currently six of his trainees are affiliated with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's investigator and early scientist award programs. Some notable trainees include Linda B. Buck
, David J. Anderson
, Catherine Dulac
, David Julius, Richard Scheller, Leslie B. Vosshall
, and Michael Wigler
.
and Axel first describe the discovery of the odorant receptors, which was the basis for their shared Nobel Prize.
These are the papers describing DNA transfection, a critical tool for the entire revolution in biology, in which genes can be modified and then stably transferred into cells. This paper was the basis for the "Axel patent" which at one time brought Columbia University as much as $100 million per year.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
neuroscientist
Neuroscientist
A neuroscientist is an individual who studies the scientific field of neuroscience or any of its related sub-fields...
whose work on the olfactory system
Olfactory system
The olfactory system is the sensory system used for olfaction, or the sense of smell. Most mammals and reptiles have two distinct parts to their olfactory system: a main olfactory system and an accessory olfactory system. The main olfactory system detects volatile, airborne substances, while the...
won him and Linda B. Buck
Linda B. Buck
Linda Brown Buck is an American biologist best known for her work on the olfactory system. She was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, along with Richard Axel, for their work on olfactory receptors....
, a former post-doctoral scientist in his research group, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
in 2004.
In their landmark paper published in 1991, Buck and Axel cloned
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
olfactory receptor
Olfactory receptor
Olfactory receptors expressed in the cell membranes of olfactory receptor neurons are responsible for the detection of odor molecules. Activated olfactory receptors are the initial player in a signal transduction cascade which ultimately produces a nerve impulse which is transmitted to the brain...
s, showing that they belong to the family of G protein coupled receptors
G protein-coupled receptor
G protein-coupled receptors , also known as seven-transmembrane domain receptors, 7TM receptors, heptahelical receptors, serpentine receptor, and G protein-linked receptors , comprise a large protein family of transmembrane receptors that sense molecules outside the cell and activate inside signal...
. By analyzing rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
, they estimated that there were approximately one thousand different gene
Gene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
s for olfactory receptors in the mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
ian genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
. This research opened the door to the genetic
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
and molecular
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
analysis of the mechanisms of olfaction
Olfaction
Olfaction is the sense of smell. This sense is mediated by specialized sensory cells of the nasal cavity of vertebrates, and, by analogy, sensory cells of the antennae of invertebrates...
. In their later work, Buck and Axel have shown that each olfactory receptor neuron
Olfactory receptor neuron
An olfactory receptor neuron , also called an olfactory sensory neuron , is a transduction cell within the olfactory system. J. Rospars, Dendritic integration in olfactory sensory neurons: a steady-state analysis of how the neuron structure and neuron environment influence the coding of odor...
remarkably only expresses one kind of olfactory receptor protein and that the input from all neurons expressing the same receptor is collected by a single dedicated glomerulus
Glomerulus (olfaction)
The glomerulus is a spherical structure located in the olfactory bulb of the brain where synapses form between the terminals of the olfactory nerve and the dendrites of mitral, periglomerular and tufted cells...
of the olfactory bulb
Olfactory bulb
The olfactory bulb is a structure of the vertebrate forebrain involved in olfaction, the perception of odors.-Anatomy:In most vertebrates, the olfactory bulb is the most rostral part of the brain. In humans, however, the olfactory bulb is on the inferior side of the brain...
.
Biography
Born in New York City, New York, Axel graduated from Stuyvesant High SchoolStuyvesant High School
Stuyvesant High School , commonly referred to as Stuy , is a New York City public high school that specializes in mathematics and science. The school opened in 1904 on Manhattan's East Side and moved to a new building in Battery Park City in 1992. Stuyvesant is noted for its strong academic...
in 1963, received his A.B. in 1967 from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, and his M.D. in 1971 from Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. He returned to Columbia later that year and became a full professor in 1978.
Axel is known to be a great aficionado of opera. Axel attended Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
's debut performance of La Traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
at the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company
Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company
The Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company was an American opera company located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that was active between 1958 and 1974. The company was led by a number of Artistic Directors during its history, beginning with Aurelio Fabiani. Other notable Artistic Directors include Julius...
in 1964 with his high school friend Jerold Brenowitz, who later became a heart surgeon. Owing to his tall stature, Axel played basketball during high school, when he reportedly allowed the opposing team's center, 'Lew' Alcindor
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a retired American professional basketball player. He is the NBA's all-time leading scorer, with 38,387 points. During his career with the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers from 1969 to 1989, Abdul-Jabbar won six NBA championships and a record six regular season...
to score 50 points; 'Lew' Alcindor, who later changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, went on to become the leading scorer in the history of the NBA.
During the late 1970s, Axel, along with microbiologist
Microbiology
Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are defined as any microscopic organism that comprises either a single cell , cell clusters or no cell at all . This includes eukaryotes, such as fungi and protists, and prokaryotes...
Saul J. Silverstein, and geneticist Michael H. Wigler, discovered a technique of cotransformation
Transformation (genetics)
In molecular biology transformation is the genetic alteration of a cell resulting from the direct uptake, incorporation and expression of exogenous genetic material from its surroundings and taken up through the cell membrane. Transformation occurs naturally in some species of bacteria, but it can...
, a process which allows foreign DNA to be inserted into a host cell to produce certain proteins. Patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
s, now colloquially referred to as the "Axel patents", covering this technique were filed for February 1980 and were issued in August 1983. As a fundamental process in recombinant DNA research as performed at pharmaceutical and biotech
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
companies, this patent proved quite lucrative for Columbia University, earning it almost $100 million a year at one time, and a top spot on the list of top universities by licensing revenue. The Axel patents expired in August 2000. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
in 1983.
Axel's primary research interest is on how the brain interprets the sense of smell, specifically mapping the parts of the brain that are sensitive to specific olfactory receptors. He holds the titles of University Professor
University Professor (Columbia)
University Professor is the highest academic rank at Columbia University.-University Professors:*Richard Axel, molecular biology and neuroscience*Jagdish Bhagwati, economics and law*Ronald Breslow, organic chemistry...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, Professor of Biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
and Molecular Biophysics
Biophysics
Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that uses the methods of physical science to study biological systems. Studies included under the branches of biophysics span all levels of biological organization, from the molecular scale to whole organisms and ecosystems...
and of Pathology
Pathology
Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
at Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Howard Hughes Medical Institute is a United States non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded by the American businessman Howard Hughes in 1953. It is one of the largest private funding organizations for biological and medical research in the United...
. In addition to contributions to neurobiology, Axel has also made seminal discoveries in immunology, and his lab was one of the first to identify the link between HIV infection and immunoreceptor CD4.
Axel is married to fellow scientist and olfaction pioneer Cornelia "Cori" Bargmann
Cornelia Bargmann
Cornelia Isabella "Cori" Bargmann is an American neurobiologist. She is known for her work on the behavior in the C. elegans, particularly olfaction in the worm...
.
Axel's ex wife is Ann Axel. Ann Axel, M.S.W., was born in 1947 to Norman and Winifred Cotrell. Ann Axel attended Barnard College, and later the Hunter School of Social Work. She specializes in psychiatry, and is a celebrated social worker at Columbia Eastside, affiliated with Columbia University Medical Center in Manhattan.
Axel is a friend of fellow Columbia neuroscientist, Charles Zuker
Charles Zuker
Charles S. Zuker is an American molecular geneticist and neurobiologist of Chilean descent. His lab has contributed to our understanding of mammalian taste, in collaboration with Nicholas Ryba's laboratory at the NIH beginning in the 1990s. Prior to working on mammalian taste, his lab focused on...
.
In addition to making contributions as a scientist, Axel has also mentored many leading scientists in the field of neurobiology. Seven of his trainees have become members of the national academy of sciences, and currently six of his trainees are affiliated with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's investigator and early scientist award programs. Some notable trainees include Linda B. Buck
Linda B. Buck
Linda Brown Buck is an American biologist best known for her work on the olfactory system. She was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, along with Richard Axel, for their work on olfactory receptors....
, David J. Anderson
David J. Anderson
David J. Anderson is an American neurobiologist. He is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. His lab is located at the California Institute of Technology, where he current holds the position of Seymour Benzer Professor in Biology....
, Catherine Dulac
Catherine Dulac
Catherine Dulac is a biologist notable for research on the molecular biology of olfactory signaling in mammals, particularly including pheromones. She developed a novel screening strategy based on screening cDNA libraries from single neurons and a new method of cloning genes from single neurons...
, David Julius, Richard Scheller, Leslie B. Vosshall
Leslie B. Vosshall
-Biography:Leslie Birgit Vosshall, Ph.D., is an American neurobiologist who is well known for her contributions in the field of olfaction, particularly for the discovery and subsequent characterization of the insect olfactory receptor family. She received her Ph.D...
, and Michael Wigler
Michael Wigler
Michael Howard Wigler graduated Princeton University , majoring in mathematics, and received his PhD from Columbia University in microbiology ....
.
Key Papers
This is the paper in which Linda B. BuckLinda B. Buck
Linda Brown Buck is an American biologist best known for her work on the olfactory system. She was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, along with Richard Axel, for their work on olfactory receptors....
and Axel first describe the discovery of the odorant receptors, which was the basis for their shared Nobel Prize.
These are the papers describing DNA transfection, a critical tool for the entire revolution in biology, in which genes can be modified and then stably transferred into cells. This paper was the basis for the "Axel patent" which at one time brought Columbia University as much as $100 million per year.