Accolades: Researchers, Networks, and Prizewinning Science at Yale School of Medicine

George Palade, MD (1912-2008)

Founding Chair, Yale School of Medicine Department of Cell Biology

George Palade is remembered as a founder of modern cell biology. He was born in Romania, where he trained and practiced as a physician before moving to the United States in 1946. His innovative use of electron microscopy made it possible to study cell structure, and he introduced methods that made possible the molecular science we know today. Many of Palade’s discoveries were so fundamental to cell biology that they are now taken for granted, including, but not limited to, the structure of mitochondria, the mechanisms connecting epithelial cells, and the field of protein trafficking. His accomplishments were recognized with the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Colleagues and students remember Palade as a strong mentor and a role model for generations of cell biologists.