Dr. Vicente Torres of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and Jing Zhou, M.D., Ph.D. of the Harvard University Medical School in Boston, MA, have been selected to receive the 2007 Lillian Jean Kaplan International Prize for Advancement in the Understanding of Polycystic Kidney Disease. The prize, one of the most significant in the medical research field, will be presented in April at the World Congress of Nephrology in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

“This is the greatest honor I have received during my career, and I am greatly appreciative for this prestigious award and Mr. Kaplan's great generosity and support of PKD research,” Dr. Torres said.

"I have been working on PKD now for 13 years and, prior to that, on other aspects of inherited kidney disease," Dr. Zhou said. "There are times when the work goes well and times when it is very difficult. The recognition inherent in the Kaplan Award gives me further encouragement to work on this disease and search for a cure."

The Lillian Jean Kaplan International Prize was established through the generosity of the family of Thomas and Dafna Kaplan, in honor of Mr. Kaplan's late mother Lillian Jean Kaplan who died PKD. The 2007 recipients were selected by a panel of experts representing the PKD Foundation and the International Society of Nephrology, under the Chairmanship of Dr. Nathan Levin. Both doctors will receive $50,000 as part of the prize.

Past recipients of the award include Dr. Jared Grantham, Dr. Peter Harris, Dr. Stefan Somlo and Dr. Greg Germino.