Today, the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) presented the Wittgenstein Award, Austria’s leading research prize, to Elly Tanaka, Scientific Director of IMBA for her pioneering on the regeneration of complex body structures using salamanders particularly, the axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum). Tanaka and her group have identified the cells and mechanisms behind these animals’ ability to regrow limbs, the spinal cord and even parts of the brain.
The Wittgenstein Award, Austria’s highest research distinction, recognizes outstanding lifetime achievements and supports bold scientific exploration. Elly Tanaka becomes the 14th Vienna BioCenter member to receive the Wittgenstein Award out of a total of 43 laureates.
Tanaka’s team recently identified the gene Hand2 as the key factor telling cells in the axolotl arm where they are and what structures to rebuild after injury. Their findings were published in the journal Nature in May. Elly Tanaka and her lab also explore why mammals lack similar regenerative abilities, showing that fibroblasts in axolotls adopt stem cell-like properties after injury, unlike in humans. Tanaka’s research holds promise for medicine. Her team has generated retinal tissue from human embryonic stem cells, offering new ways to study and potentially treat blindness. Other projects focus on heart regeneration and neural circuit repair in axolotls.
"I am extremely grateful to receive the Wittgenstein Award from the Austrian Science Fund. This recognition acknowledges past efforts of many members of my lab, and energizes our future ambitions” Tanaka commented. “The award comes at an exciting time for the field of regeneration research, where new discoveries are rapidly reshaping our understanding of tissue repair and plasticity. The Wittgenstein Award will allow me to invest in the next generation of scientists, to give young researchers in the lab the freedom and resources to explore how findings from the axolotl can be translated to mammalian systems. I look forward to the advances this will catalyze—not only in our lab, but across the broader regenerative biology community worldwide. This award merits hard work of scientists in my lab, a big community at the Vienna BioCenter, our friends and partners in the Austrian Academy of Sciences, and the wider life science community of Austria that has become incredibly powerful in recent years."
"I congratulate Elly Tanaka on receiving the prestigious Wittgenstein Award," says Vienna BioCenter chairman Harald Isemann. "It is remarkable that 14 out of 43 Wittgenstein laureates to date have been affiliated with the Vienna BioCenter. This underscores the vital role that lighthouses such as the Vienna BioCenter play for Austria in advancing science and innovation. A cluster of scientific excellence such as our campus creates synergies, attracts talent from around the globe, and can efficiently provide access to cutting-edge technology and expertise. The continued success of the Vienna BioCenter highlights the importance of sustained support for such hubs of innovation — where science is not only done, but where it thrives at the highest international level."
About Elly Tanaka
Elly Tanaka studied biochemistry at the University of California in San Francisco, USA, and at Harvard University in Boston, USA. After a research stay at the Ludwig Cancer Research Institute in London, UK, she moved to the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden. Since 2008, she has held a professorship for animal models of regeneration at the Technical University of Dresden. From 2014 to 2016, she also served as director of the Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD). From 2016 to 2024, she worked as a senior scientist at the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology in Vienna, Austria. Since 2024, Tanaka has been the Scientific Director at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) in Vienna. In 2024, Elly Tanaka was admitted to Leopoldina in the Genetics/Molecular Biology and Cell Biology Section.
About the Wittgenstein Award
Austria’s most prestigious science prize, the Wittgenstein Award recognizes outstanding researchers for their exceptional scientific achievements and international impact. Named after the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, the award is granted by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) and provides up to €1.9 million in flexible funding to empower pioneering research with a long-term vision, reinforcing Austria’s position at the forefront of global science.