It is with great pleasure and honor that we announce the formal appointment of Sir John Walker, a Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, as the Chairman of our Scientific Supervisory Board (SSB). 

John is a distinguished and world-renowned scientist whose research has resulted in many significant scientific discoveries, such as his acclaimed work on ATP synthase, which led to him receiving the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1997. He was also one of the scientists who discovered the citrin aspartate-glutamate transporter whose genetic mutations cause citrin deficiency. In 1998, he was appointed Director of the MRC Dunn Human Nutrition Unit in Cambridge, which became the MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit in 2008. Since 2013 he has been Director Emeritus, and continues to delve deeper into the fundamental basis of energy conversion in biology and works to use that knowledge for medical benefit. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society, and in 2012, he received its Copley Medal, the UK’s highest scientific accolade.

John has also served as the Special Scientific Advisor for Citrin Foundation since 2019. His guidance and expertise have been pivotal in the growth and expansion of the Foundation. He has also played an integral role in the development of the Foundation’s research strategy (https://citrinfoundation.org/research-strategy) which has significantly shaped the direction of Citrin Foundation’s research.

The Foundation is in the process of establishing its SSB. The Foundation’s SSB will be composed of preeminent scientists and clinicians. It will oversee both the clinical and scientific research strategies of the Foundation. The SSB holds key roles in the review of grant applications, assessment of research budget allocations, research network expansion, and providing guidance to ongoing research projects backed by the Foundation.

Citrin Foundation is extremely grateful to John for his contribution to our Foundation so far and we look forward to working with him in his capacity as the Chairman of the SSB. With his unparalleled expertise and experience, we believe that John will help to accelerate the development of the Foundation tremendously and get us closer to our goal of finding effective treatments for citrin deficiency.

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