The Greater Milwaukee Foundation has awarded its annual Shaw Scientist prizes of $200,000 each to two young Wisconsin scientists whose work has shown promise for groundbreaking research.
Scott Kennedy, 38, an assistant professor of pharmacology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is using worms to study RNA interference, a mechanism that can turn off any gene in the genome. His research could lead to technology that could allow better treatment of human diseases.
Dazhong “Dave” Zhao, 38, an assistant professor of biological sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, is researching the male reproductive cells in mustard weed plants, work that eventually could help create more robust crops.