GE Healthcare Life Sciences and the journal Science have invited entries from outstanding young scientists from around the world who have completed their PhDs in the area of molecular biology during 2010 for the Young Life Scientists award. The deadline to enter the 2011 GE and Science prize for Young Life Scientists is August 1, 2011.

GE Healthcare Life Sciences and the journal Science, co-sponsors of the prize, believe that support for young scientists at the start of their careers is critical to the future of continued life sciences research. Past winners have made an impact in life sciences research and have used the prize as a stepping-stone in their scientific research careers.

Anurag Gupta, general manager, GE Healthcare Lifesciences, India said, “I would like to encourage all researchers in India who completed a PhD in molecular biology to submit an application for the GE and Science prize. Life Sciences is becoming increasingly important in India – both to our rapidly developing pharmaceutical industry and to the efforts to improve the health of the Indian people. GE Healthcare seeks to encourage our young scientists at the start of their careers and this prize is one way of recognising their achievements.”

To be eligible for the prize, entrants must submit a 1,000-word essay which describes their doctoral thesis. The grand prize winner will have his or her essay published in Science and receive a prize of US$ 25,000. Prizes are also awarded each year to finalists in four geographic regions, each winner receiving US$ 5,000. All winners will be invited to an award ceremony to be held in December 2011 in Stockholm, Sweden to receive their prize and to meet with the current Nobel laureates.

Commenting on this year’s prize, Kieran Murphy, president and CEO of GE Healthcare Life Sciences said, “The GE and Science Prize for Young Life Scientists was set up over fifteen years ago in the year 1995, to recognise the talent of the world’s most promising young researchers as they embark on their careers. By encouraging scientific progress in our understanding of genes and proteins, the prize is contributing to the global research effort to tackle some of healthcare’s most pressing challenges.”

According to Monica Bradford, executive editor of Science, “Supporting young scientists as they embark on their careers is vital to the future of molecular biology. We are proud to be part of the prize which acknowledges the important studies these promising scientists conduct and encourages them to make further strides to advance global scientific understanding.”