| Citation | Distinguished for his highly original studies in developmental genetics. The candidate's early commitment to research on mammalian development, blastocyst implantation and parthogenogenesis established the foundation for major contributions to genetic manipulation of embryos and to the discovery of germline-specific imprinting of parental genomes. His imaginative combination of experimental embryology with developmental and molecular genetics yielded unique insights on the differential roles of parental chromosomes in controlling growth and differentiation of embryo cell lineages. His transgenic studies have also revealed that epigenetic modifications of DNA methylation in germ cells and embryos confer functional differences on the expression of maternal and paternal alleles. His discoveries have wide ranging implications for unravelling human genetic disorders, designing novel strategies for plant and animal breeding, and for our understanding of the evolution of sexual reproduction. |