Charles University Teams Received the Minister of Health Awards

On December 13, 2010, five research teams from Charles University received the award for outstanding achievements in research in development from the Minister of Health, Mr. Leoš Heger, in a ceremony in the Martinic Palace. At the same time, the Award of the Public was announced, which will be granted to the team that will have garnered most votes in the poll on the Ministry of Health website. Researchers in the field of medicine are being awarded each year on the anniversary of the birth of the renowned Czech physician and scientist Jan Evangelista Purkyně.

This year’s candidates were chosen out of 220 projects finished in 2009. Expert committees then narrowed the number down to 15 nominations. Thereafter the list of the candidates was made available to the Scientific Committee of the Internal Grant Agency of the Ministry of Health, to which the principle investigators were to present the results of particular projects. The committee then gave the list of the recommended nominations to the Minister of Health who makes the final decision. “Based on a careful examination of the nominations, I have decided to grant the Minister of Health Award to three teams and give a honourable mention to other four, because although they might not be on the very pinnacle, their achievements can be and will be important on the national level and can have a significant impact on the international level as well”, said Minister Heger. All three awards were given to teams from Charles University, honourable mentions were divided equally between the teams from Charles University and Palacký University Olomouc.

The Minister of Health Award was received by Professor MUDr. Evžen Růžička, DrSc. and his colleagues from the Charles University 1^st Faculty of Medicine. The objective of the project was to perfect the implantation procedure of deep brain stimulation, to develop its new indications and contribute to the knowledge of its effects.

The Minister of Health Award was received by doc. MUDr. Pavel Kršek, Ph.D. and his colleagues from the Charles University 2^nd Faculty of Medicine. The goal of their project was to optimize the diagnostics of complicated candidates of surgical treatment of epilepsy and improve their post-operation prognoses.

The Minister of Health Award was received by Professor MUDr. Martin Haluzík, DrSc. and his colleagues from the Charles University 1^st Faculty of Medicine. The team investigated the effects of the hormone that is related to obesity and inefficiency of insulin in female diabetes patients. 

A honourable mention was given to Professor MUDr. Tomáš Seeman, CSc. and his team from the Charles University 2^nd Faculty of Medicine. The goal of their project was to identify the prevalence of proteinuria in children after kidney transplantation, investigate the risk factors causing its emergence and the possibilities of proteinuria prevention using an angiotensin-converting enzyme.

A honourable mention was given to Professor MUDr. Renata Cífková, CSc., and her colleagues from the Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine. The objective of the project is to identify and analyze the long-term trends of basic risk factors for cardiovascular disease in a representative sample of the Czech population.

You can vote in the Award of the Public poll here.

 (Lucie Kettnerová)

Translation: Jaroslav Švelch