EMBO Gold Medal 2012 awarded to Jiří Friml

28-06-2012: EMBO announced Jiří Friml of the Department of Plant Systems Biology, VIB and Ghent University, Belgium and Central European Institute of Technology, University Brno, Czech Republic as the winner of the 2012 EMBO Gold Medal.

Friml receives the award for defining how the plant hormone auxin functions to regulate plant development. He was also recognized for showing how the auxin-governed molecular processes optimise adaptation of plant development and growth to ever-changing environmental conditions.

“His groundbreaking results influence and continue to shape present and future efforts in a number of areas of plant biology research,” stated EMBO Member Ferenc Nagy. The results of Friml’s research are of major importance to agriculture as they provide a basis for targeted engineering that could lead to the development of plants that produce higher yields or which are more resistant to drought.

“Being awarded by my peers from EMBO is an immense honour and gives me great encouragement for my further work. I would like to think that this award is not only for me but also in a wider sense for plant research which deserves more support and could definitely benefit from more awareness,” said the Gold Medal winner.