Dr. Hans R. Schöler is the appointed Marion Dilley and David George Jones Chair in Reproduction Medicine and Head of the Center for Animal Transgenesis and Germ Cell Research of the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. He acquired his doctorate degree in Molecular Biology from the University of Heidelberg in Heidelberg, Germany in 1985. Prior to his relocation to the United States in 1999, he served as Head of the Research and Development Group at Boehringer Mannheim (now known as Roche) in Germany, from 1986 to 1988, where he conducted research on effective therapeutic strategies for a number of human diseases. From 1991 to 1999, he headed a research group at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory.

Dr. Schöler is a pioneer and fervent advocate of stem cell research. His 20 years in this field has resulted in over 50 technical publications in journals such as Science, Nature, and Cell.

Discoveries made by Dr. Schöler’s research group and collaborates hold tremendous implications, as they enable the manipulation and generation of embryonic stem cells in culture without the use of human embryos, an issue fraught with much ethical debate and controversy. This technology also holds great potential for the generation of new tissues and organs to replace those damaged by diseases, conditions, and disabilities, such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, spinal cord injury, stroke, burns, heart disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Presentation Summary