Margaret Pericak-Vance of UM has been recognized by the Faculty Senate for her significant international impact on the field of human genetics. Throughout her career, she has altered the paradigm of genetic research, shifting the focus from rare diseases to common ones.

Pericak-Vance played a key role in mapping over 50 rare Mendelian diseases since the 1980s. She also cemented her role in the field of human genetics by determining that the APOE-4 gene variant increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Her current work focuses on identifying genetic factors that cause disease and discovering new drug targets for treatments.

• Margaret Pericak-Vance