Douglas C. Wallace, PhD, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Director of the Center for Mitochondrial and Epigenomic Medicine (CMEM) at CHOP, was inducted into Italian Academy of Sciences during its 234th annual meeting in Rome as a foreign member of the organization. Dr. Wallace is also a member of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences and Medicine and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. Wallace’s induction to the Academy recognizes his scientific contributions as the founder of the field of mitochondrial medicine. During the 1970s, Dr. Wallace defined the genetics of the DNA located in the mitochondria, the “power plants” of the cell, including demonstrating that human mitochondrial DNA is exclusively maternally inherited. The mitochondria are located outside the cell’s nucleus in the cytoplasm, and the mitochondrial DNA codes for the wiring diagram of the power plants. His work has included finding key insights into the mechanisms by which mitochondria play a role in numerous metabolic and neurological disorders.
Read the CHOP news announcement.