Nobel laureate Peter Agre, MD, is Director of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Founder of the Agre Society at CWRU. Dr. Agre’s best-known contribution to science is undoubtedly the 1991 discovery of the first functionally defined water channel protein or “aquaporin.” This discovery arose out of investigation of a “contaminant” in purified Rh preparations. Aquaporin provides a mechanism by which living organisms regulate and facilitate the transport of water molecules through cell membranes. In 2003, Dr. Agre was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this groundbreaking work. Subsequent work revealed that the first protein (dubbed AQP1) was in fact, only one of a family of aquaporins that together make up what Agre calls “the plumbing system for cells.” Dr. Agre attributes the discovery to “sheer blind luck.” Only upon reflection with further investigations untaken in his lab and after consulting with mentor Dr. John C. Parker at the University of North Carolina, did Dr. Agre realize the significance of this rascal protein.
In 2009 Dr. Agre and five other Americans representing leading scientific organizations met with their counterparts in North Korea. He also led a non-governmental delegation of scientists who visited with counterparts in Cuba. Such visits can encourage more scientific cooperation. At the same time, Dr. Agre feels that the values of science – transparency vigorous inquiry and respectful debate – can also support peaceful conflict resolution and improved international relations.
Johns Hopkins Hospital and School of Public Health has remained Agre’s professional home since 2004. He rose through the ranks to Professor in the Departments of Biological Chemistry and Medicine and in 1996, was appointed Director of the school’s Graduate Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine. In 2008, he was given the opportunity to direct the Malaria Institute in the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a position he continues to hold.
Peter Agre, MD, was our special guest at Pulmonary Grand Rounds. The title of his talk is "Science and Diplomacy". Click the icon below to view the video of his slides.
Read an extract from Peter Agre's Autobiography
