鶹ýɫƬ

Award

Kim Orth’s efforts ‘nothing short of dazzling’

Geoff Hunt
Jan. 31, 2012

Kim Orth, professor of molecular biology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, has been named the winner of the 鶹ýɫƬ and 鶹ýɫƬ Biology Young Investigator Award.

awards_orth Kim Orth

About the award

The ASBMB Young Investigator Award (formerly the ASBMB/Schering-Plough Research Institute Award) recognizes outstanding research contributions to biochemistry and molecular biology. The recipient must have no more than 15 years postdoctoral experience. The award consists of a plaque, $5,000, transportation, and expenses to present a lecture at the 2012 ASBMB annual meeting.

Orth received the award in recognition of her seminal discoveries of the molecular mechanisms that virulence factors from pathogenic bacteria (including those responsible for the plague and food poisoning) use to manipulate host cell signaling systems to promote infection. These bacterial factors disrupt the host’s defense mechanisms, allowing the bacteria to survive and replicate by tipping the balance of homeostatic signaling pathways in favor of the invading pathogen.

For Eric Olson, also from UT-Southwestern, Orth’s work “represents a unique convergence of biochemistry and cellular biology with the basic mechanisms of infectious disease.” Jack Dixon, vice president and chief scientific officer at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, agreed. “Kim’s efforts were nothing short of dazzling,” he said.

“I feel extremely honored to win such a prestigious award for our scientific endeavors,” said Orth. “I credit much of this success to the skilled people I have had the privilege to mentor, the first-class, collegial environment at UT-Southwestern, and my supportive friends and family.” A scientist to the bone, Orth also made sure to credit the “clever bacterial pathogens that evolved magnificent mechanisms to manipulate cellular signaling and who make science so much fun.”

After an undergraduate career at Texas A&M University, Orth received her master’s in biological chemistry at the University of California, Los Angeles, before moving to UT-Southwestern, where she spent three years as a research associate before beginning her Ph.D. program, which she finished in 1995. After a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Michigan, Orth returned to UT-Southwestern in 2001, where she has been ever since.

Orth will receive her award during the Experimental Biology 2012 conference in San Diego, where she will deliver an award lecture. The presentation will take place at 2:55 p.m. April 24 in the San Diego Convention Center.

Enjoy reading ASBMB Today?

Become a member to receive the print edition four times a year and the digital edition monthly.

Learn more
Geoff Hunt

Geoff Hunt is the ASBMB's former outreach manager. 

Get the latest from ASBMB Today

Enter your email address, and we’ll send you a weekly email with recent articles, interviews and more.

Latest in People

People highlights or most popular articles

Meet the 2025 SOC grant awardees
Outreach

Meet the 2025 SOC grant awardees

Aug. 15, 2025

Five science outreach and communication projects received up to $1,000 from ASBMB to promote the understanding of molecular life science.

Unraveling cancer’s spaghetti proteins
Profile

Unraveling cancer’s spaghetti proteins

Aug. 13, 2025

MOSAIC scholar Katie Dunleavy investigates how Aurora kinase A shields oncogene c-MYC from degradation, using cutting-edge techniques to uncover new strategies targeting “undruggable” molecules.

How HCMV hijacks host cells — and beyond
Profile

How HCMV hijacks host cells — and beyond

Aug. 12, 2025

Ileana Cristea, an ASBMB Breakthroughs webinar speaker, presented her research on how viruses reprogram cell structure and metabolism to enhance infection and how these mechanisms might link viral infections to cancer and other diseases.

Understanding the lipid link to gene expression in the nucleus
Profile

Understanding the lipid link to gene expression in the nucleus

Aug. 11, 2025

Ray Blind, an ASBMB Breakthroughs speaker, presented his research on how lipids and sugars in the cell nucleus are involved in signaling and gene expression and how these pathways could be targeted to identify therapeutics for diseases like cancer.

In memoriam: William S. Sly
In Memoriam

In memoriam: William S. Sly

Aug. 11, 2025

He served on the 鶹ýɫƬ and 鶹ýɫƬ Biology Council in 2005 and 2006 and was an ASBMB member for 35 years.

ASBMB committees welcome new members
Society News

ASBMB committees welcome new members

Aug. 7, 2025

Members joined these committees: Education and Professional Development, Maximizing Access, Meetings, 鶹ýɫƬ, Public Affairs Advisory, Science Outreach and Communication, Student Chapters and Women in Biochemistry and 鶹ýɫƬ Biology.