Wojciech Fendler MD, PhD from the Medical University of Lodz is the winner of the 8^th edition of the NCN awards. It was awarded to a researcher from a medical university for the first time.

As usual, once a year, the prestigious distinction was awarded to three outstanding young researchers who had made significant discoveries in basic research conducted in Polish scientific units in the field of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Engineering.

Wojciech Fendler MD, PhD from the Medical University of Lodz received NCN award in Life Sciences for his distinguished results in his research into microRNA as biomarkers of accidental exposure to ionising radiation and side effects of radiotherapy. In his research Wojciech Fendler proved that specific microRNA molecules identified in blood serum indicate irreversible radiation -induced damage to bone marrow.

‘My research focuses on the risk identification and prediction of harmful effects of ionising radiation with the intention of designing a diagnostic test to identify a potentially lethal dose of radiation exposure. This could speed up the selection of post-exposed patients for life-saving bone marrow transplant’, explains Wojciech Fendler MD PhD.  ‘After the large-scale research into the mechanisms which regulate the production of radiation-dependent microRNA and after the analyses of micro-RNA-based diagnostic tests application in radiation side-effects monitoring, it’s time to enter the implementation stage’, he adds.

Wojciech Fendler MD PhD studied to be a medical doctor. After graduation, he began to investigate the origins of rare types of diabetes, their epidemiology and tools to facilitate diagnostics. After his habilitation in 2013, he shifted his focus to microRNA as biomarkers and conducted his research in collaboration with the researchers from Harvard Medical School.