MBL Friday Evening Lecture – “How I Have Scientific Fun: Discoveries, Mechanisms, Therapeutics, and Learning” – Timothy Springer

Scientists can have fun and adventure. Dr. Springer’s lecture will provide four insights into how.

Making discoveries: How do the white cells in our blood recognize other cells or exit the bloodstream to fight cancer or infection? The discovery of adhesion molecules, including integrins, using antibodies unveiled the answer.

Unraveling mechanisms: How do integrins transduce chemical signals into cell locomotion and other vital cell functions? The mechanisms hinge on integrins adopting three “conformational states” and transmitting forces across cell membranes between extracellular footholds and the cytoskeleton, thereby stabilizing integrins’ active state.

Engaging in entrepreneurship: New targets in cell-cell recognition and trafficking and new molecular mechanisms have enabled the development of new therapeutics and the launch of companies to develop and provide them to patients. Here lies the origin of biomedical success stories including, LeukoSite, Morphic Therapeutic, and the Institute for Protein Innovation.

Learning how to learn: Scientists are privileged because their domain requires them to perpetually learn and develop new skills, ideas, and even disciplines. Research shows that those who challenge themselves and deliberately practice new skills succeed more than those who possess a high IQ.

Timothy Springer is an award-winning scientist, eight-time entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He is currently Latham Family Professor of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Springer has more than 500 publications and 30 patents. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and was awarded the Cancer Research Institute Coley Award, the Crafoord Prize, and the prestigious Canada International Gairdner Prize among others. After earning his Ph.D. in molecular biology and biochemistry from Harvard, Dr. Springer began his post-graduate career in the laboratory of Nobel Laureate Cesar Milstein in Cambridge, England. The research with monoclonal antibodies launched his extensive and award-winning work on adhesion receptors in the immune system. His discoveries allowed him to launch LeukoSite in 1993, the first of seven successful companies that he founded or invested in, including the COVID vaccine-creator, Moderna Therapeutics. His discovery work and entrepreneurship led to the development and approval of seven therapeutics that have treated hundreds of thousands of patients. As a philanthropist, Dr. Springer leveraged his entrepreneurial success to launch the Institute for Protein Innovation in 2017, a unique nonprofit research institution providing synthetic antibodies and deep protein expertise to accelerate biological research and therapeutics. He has also endowed Chairs and Professorships at Harvard Medical School, Boston Children’s Hospital, and the University of California. Dr. Springer is a former MBL Whitman Scientist and Director of the Physiology course. He is currently a member of the Board of Trustees.