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Miller School Medical Geneticist Wins Research Award

1/14/2009

Mustafa Tekin, M.D., a new associate professor in the Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Department of Human Genetics at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, has received the prestigious TUBITAK Junior Science Award from the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey for his work on the genetics of deafness.

Three categories of TUBITAK awards are given annually to scientists who are Turkish citizens for their outstanding achievements in basic and applied natural sciences, made while working in Turkey.  The Junior Science Award recognizes researchers under the age of 40 who have demonstrated accomplishments and promise for future contributions to science at an international level.  Dr. Tekin received his award at the ceremony held at the Çankaya Köşkü, the residence of the president of Turkey, on December 23, 2008.

Established in 1963, the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey is the leading research management and funding agency in Turkey.  The council supports and conducts research and development activities and plays a leading role in fostering the growth of a science and technology culture in Turkey. The council is an autonomous institution and is governed by a scientific board composed of prominent Turkish scholars from universities, industry and research units.

“I am happy that my work on the genetics of deafness is now being recognized by the most prestigious scientific organization in Turkey,” Dr. Tekin said.  “I hope to carry this effort to a more international level at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.”

Dr. Tekin is board certified in clinical genetics and attributes the award in part to his paper titled “Homozygous Mutations in Fibroblast Growth Factor 3 are Associated with a New Form of Syndromic Deafness Characterized by Inner Ear Agenesis, Microtia, and Microdontia,” in which he and colleagues described a new genetic syndrome associated with deafness, published in the February 2007 issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

“The TUBITAK Award acknowledges Mustafa’s talent and his exceptional ability to merge his extensive background in pediatrics and deafness with human genetics,” said Jeffery Vance, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair of the Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Department of Human Genetics.  “We are pleased to have him at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.”