Mayana Zatz
Encyclopedia
Mayana Zatz is a Brazil
ian molecular biologist and geneticist
. She is a professor
at the University of São Paulo
, currently being its Research dean
.
Born in Israel
in 1947, she moved to France
with her family and lived there until the age of seven years. Mayana arrived in Brazil with her family in 1955. She obtained a BA in Biology
at University of São Paulo
in 1968, a M.Sc. and a D.Sc. in Biological Sciences from University of São Paulo
in 1970 and 1974, respectively, her post-doctorate in Medical Genetics
at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), in 1977, and her livre-docência from University of São Paulo
, in 1987. Mayana became interested in the study of muscular dystrophies
when she was at college and followed a patient from a family with a high incidence of the condition, and who wanted to start a family.
In 1969, Dr Zatz started her work in genetic counseling
in families which were carriers of neuromuscular diseases, in order to evaluate as well as to inform the risk of having offspring with a similar problem. Twelve years later she contacted these same families again, and found that most of the high risk families had avoided having children. On the other hand Mayana was shocked to see the way the sick children born during that period had been abandoned. These children, who generally had a normal mental development but whose muscular problems were not treated, neither went to school nor underwent physical therapy
.
Therefore, in 1981, Mayana and her team founded the Brazilian Association of Muscular Dystrophy (ABIM) at the Institute of Bioscience of the USP. Seven years later she obtained the physical location for the organization’s headquarters. ABIM, which was the first center for assistance of dystrophy carriers in Latin America
, weekly treats ca. 100 children and adolescents divided into daily groups of twenty patients, besides eventual visits adding up to approximately 300 people per month. Since its foundation the organization has assisted over 1,000 (mostly poor) children. They are first screened and upon confirmation of the illness are sent to the association for lifetime treatment. ABIM offers physical therapy, hydrotherapy, recreational activities, activities which stimulate creativity
and reasoning, besides psychological group and individual support for the carriers and their relatives.
Currently Mayana is a member of the International Human Genome Project
of the Academy of Sciences of the State of São Paulo, and of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences
. According to the Institute of Scientific Information, her work has been cited 1,500 times in 102 publications between 1977 and 1997. She has had 173 papers and approximately 150 articles published in foreign magazines such as "Nature Genetics
" and "Human Molecular Genetics
". Mayana is also columnist of Brazilian Veja Magazine.
Since the beginning of her career Mayana has assisted approximately 16,000 people of families affected by genetic diseases (mostly neuromuscular problems), which is the highest number of cases registered in the world. In the latter part of 1995, Mayana, professor Maria Rita Passos Bueno, and doctorate student Eloísa de Sá Moreira were the first scientists in the world to find one of the gene
s related to a dystrophy which affects the arms and legs. They also mapped the gene responsible for the Knobloch syndrome, which causes a type of progressive blindness
.
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian molecular biologist and geneticist
Geneticist
A geneticist is a biologist who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a researcher or lecturer. Some geneticists perform experiments and analyze data to interpret the inheritance of skills. A geneticist is also a Consultant or...
. She is a professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at the University of São Paulo
University of São Paulo
Universidade de São Paulo is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian university and one of the country's most prestigious...
, currently being its Research dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
.
Biography
Professor Zatz's accomplishments have been recognized and she has received many awards and prizes, including the 2000 L’Oréal-UNESCO Awards for Women in Science and the 2001 Claudia Woman of the Year Award, by Claudia Magazine.Born in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in 1947, she moved to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
with her family and lived there until the age of seven years. Mayana arrived in Brazil with her family in 1955. She obtained a BA in Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
at University of São Paulo
University of São Paulo
Universidade de São Paulo is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian university and one of the country's most prestigious...
in 1968, a M.Sc. and a D.Sc. in Biological Sciences from University of São Paulo
University of São Paulo
Universidade de São Paulo is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian university and one of the country's most prestigious...
in 1970 and 1974, respectively, her post-doctorate in Medical Genetics
Medical genetics
Medical genetics is the specialty of medicine that involves the diagnosis and management of hereditary disorders. Medical genetics differs from Human genetics in that human genetics is a field of scientific research that may or may not apply to medicine, but medical genetics refers to the...
at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), in 1977, and her livre-docência from University of São Paulo
University of São Paulo
Universidade de São Paulo is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian university and one of the country's most prestigious...
, in 1987. Mayana became interested in the study of muscular dystrophies
Muscular dystrophy
Muscular dystrophy is a group of muscle diseases that weaken the musculoskeletal system and hamper locomotion. Muscular dystrophies are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cells and tissue.In the 1860s, descriptions of boys who...
when she was at college and followed a patient from a family with a high incidence of the condition, and who wanted to start a family.
In 1969, Dr Zatz started her work in genetic counseling
Genetic counseling
Genetic counseling or traveling is the process by which patients or relatives, at risk of an inherited disorder, are advised of the consequences and nature of the disorder, the probability of developing or transmitting it, and the options open to them in management and family planning...
in families which were carriers of neuromuscular diseases, in order to evaluate as well as to inform the risk of having offspring with a similar problem. Twelve years later she contacted these same families again, and found that most of the high risk families had avoided having children. On the other hand Mayana was shocked to see the way the sick children born during that period had been abandoned. These children, who generally had a normal mental development but whose muscular problems were not treated, neither went to school nor underwent physical therapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
.
Therefore, in 1981, Mayana and her team founded the Brazilian Association of Muscular Dystrophy (ABIM) at the Institute of Bioscience of the USP. Seven years later she obtained the physical location for the organization’s headquarters. ABIM, which was the first center for assistance of dystrophy carriers in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, weekly treats ca. 100 children and adolescents divided into daily groups of twenty patients, besides eventual visits adding up to approximately 300 people per month. Since its foundation the organization has assisted over 1,000 (mostly poor) children. They are first screened and upon confirmation of the illness are sent to the association for lifetime treatment. ABIM offers physical therapy, hydrotherapy, recreational activities, activities which stimulate creativity
Creativity
Creativity refers to the phenomenon whereby a person creates something new that has some kind of value. What counts as "new" may be in reference to the individual creator, or to the society or domain within which the novelty occurs...
and reasoning, besides psychological group and individual support for the carriers and their relatives.
Currently Mayana is a member of the International Human Genome Project
Human Genome Project
The Human Genome Project is an international scientific research project with a primary goal of determining the sequence of chemical base pairs which make up DNA, and of identifying and mapping the approximately 20,000–25,000 genes of the human genome from both a physical and functional...
of the Academy of Sciences of the State of São Paulo, and of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences
Brazilian Academy of Sciences
The Brazilian Academy of Sciences is the national academy of Brazil. It is headquartered in the city of Rio de Janeiro and was founded in 1916....
. According to the Institute of Scientific Information, her work has been cited 1,500 times in 102 publications between 1977 and 1997. She has had 173 papers and approximately 150 articles published in foreign magazines such as "Nature Genetics
Nature Genetics
Nature Genetics is a scientific journal concerning genetics. It is published by Nature Publishing Group, and was founded as part of the Nature family of journal in 1992. The 2010 impact factor is 36.377. Its sister journal is Nature Reviews Genetics.- External links :*...
" and "Human Molecular Genetics
Human Molecular Genetics
Human Molecular Genetics, first published in 1992, is a semimonthly peer reviewed, scientific journal, published by The Oxford University Press. The journal's focus is research papers on all topics related to human molecular genetics. In addition, two "special review" issues are published each year...
". Mayana is also columnist of Brazilian Veja Magazine.
Since the beginning of her career Mayana has assisted approximately 16,000 people of families affected by genetic diseases (mostly neuromuscular problems), which is the highest number of cases registered in the world. In the latter part of 1995, Mayana, professor Maria Rita Passos Bueno, and doctorate student Eloísa de Sá Moreira were the first scientists in the world to find one of the gene
Gene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
s related to a dystrophy which affects the arms and legs. They also mapped the gene responsible for the Knobloch syndrome, which causes a type of progressive blindness
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
.
External links
- Curriculum vitae. CNPq Lattes System (In Portuguese).
- Profile for Woman of the Year Award. Cláudia Magazine, Editora Abril (In Portuguese)