Professor Stephen O'Rahilly from the Departments of Medicine and Clinical Biochemistry at Cambridge University has been awarded the Boehringer Ingelheim Heinrich Wieland Prize worth £16,000 (€24,500). The award was given for the contribution made by Professor O'Rahilly's research into the molecular mechanisms in obesity and type II diabetes towards understanding the genetic causes of human obesity and insulin resistance.
Professor Dieter Hinzen, head of Boehringer Ingelheim's largest research and development centre at Biberach in Germany, said: 'This prize reflects our special relationship to Heinrich Wieland, who laid the foundations for Boehringer Ingelheim's pharmaceutical research. The Heinrich Wieland Prize emphasises our commitment to scientific progress in research into metabolic diseases.'
The Prize is awarded annually for work in the fields of biochemistry, chemistry and physiology of fats and lipids and their clinical importance.