UTD Honors Nobel Prize-Winning Alum at 10th Anniversary Event

The University of Texas at Dallas recently honored one of its most distinguished alumni, Aziz Sancar, MD, PhD’77, for his enduring impact on science and society by marking the 10th anniversary of his Nobel Prize in chemistry.

Sancar, who earned his doctorate in molecular and cell biology from the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (NSM), was one of three recipients of the 2015 Nobel Prize in chemistry, which recognized the recipients’ pioneering work mapping the mechanisms by which cells monitor and repair damaged DNA.

At the April 22 celebration, held in the Brettell Reading Room of the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum, University leaders highlighted Sancar’s commitment to scientific progress and his humanitarian approach to improving the future.

“The discoveries that Dr. Sancar made really help us understand the resilience of life at the molecular level,” said Dr. David Hyndman, dean of NSM and the Francis S. and Maurine G. Johnson Distinguished University Chair. “We count ourselves very lucky to know Dr. Sancar as a brilliant scientist and a wonderful person. Every time I visit his lab, you can feel how passionate he is about making a difference for the next generation of scientists.”

The gathering brought together UT Dallas leadership, faculty, students and guests to reflect on Sancar’s contributions to science and his lasting connection to the University. On permanent display in the Brettell Reading Room is a gold-plated bronze replica of Sancar’s Nobel medallion, which he presented to UT Dallas during a campus visit in 2023.

UT Dallas President Richard C. Benson, the Eugene McDermott Distinguished University Chair of Leadership, emphasized Sancar’s influence on future generations.

“An anniversary is a time for reflection, but rather than looking back, I encourage us all to look ahead to the many innovations that will come from Dr. Sancar’s research and to the other remarkable UT Dallas alumni who become scientists, researchers, artists, teachers and innovators,” Benson said. “They will follow in the footsteps of great scientists like Dr. Sancar.”

Sancar began his Nobel Prize-winning research as a graduate student at UT Dallas, working under the late Dr. Claud Stanley Rupert, one of the field’s pioneers and a founding faculty member of UT Dallas. Sancar credits that formative period with launching his scientific career.

“Coming here to UT Dallas, it was a small place, a sort of family atmosphere,” said Sancar, the Sarah Graham Kenan Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. “We were all excited about science. We didn’t worry about the money. That’s how I got to work on the research that built my career.”

Sancar, a native of Savur, Turkey, put aside his childhood dream of becoming the goalkeeper for Turkey’s national soccer team to instead attend medical school, where his fascination with DNA began. After serving as a physician in his hometown, he enrolled at UT Dallas, where he met fellow molecular biology graduate student Gwen Boles Sancar MS’74, PhD’77, his wife of 45 years. Aziz Sancar received the UT Dallas Distinguished Alumni Award in 2009 and was named the University’s inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award winner in 2018.

Dr. Johann Deisenhofer, a professor emeritus of biophysics at UT Southwestern Medical Center who won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1988, also attended the UT Dallas event. Sancar described a critical moment in his early research when a discussion with Deisenhofer facilitated a breakthrough in the development of a key enzyme needed for his own work.

“I’m really glad Hans is here to celebrate with us,” Sancar said. “And I’m overwhelmed with the interest, friendship and warmth from this community in showing me this great kindness.”

At the event, Hyndman announced an effort to create the Aziz Sancar Student Support Fund, a new endowment in NSM that will support students who aspire to scientific excellence.

“Where he came from and where he went — it’s really inspiring,” Hyndman said. “We’re trying to carry on the legacy of what Aziz has done. We want to support students who are inspired to follow that legacy.”