Leland Hartwell

First Person | Leland Hartwell Courtesy of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Leland Hartwell, a co-recipient of the 2001 Nobel Prize, spent his football-playing, girl-chasing high school years in Los Angeles. His 1949 metallic green Mercury--he went to Mexico to buy its green and white upholstery--was the same type of car that James Dean drove in the movie Rebel Without a Cause. "The first time I saw American Graffiti," Hartwell recalls, "I was stunned, I couldn't get up. It was like reliving my high school days." Hartwell, now 63, has incurred a memory or two since. Now the director of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, he earned his reputation and awards for his discoveries about cell cycle regulation. "All of my work has been motivated by thinking of cancer as a disease and then figuring out the fundamental questions, and approaching it in yeast--first in cell division, and then in genetic instability." Seattle celebrated your Nobel Prize, declaring Dec. 10, 2001, "Dr. Lee Hartwell Day." What happened? [The politicians] called me down to City Hall, gave me some plaque and read some statement. The only advantage of having a day named after you is that you can't get parking tickets, but it was so late in the day it was irrelevant. You also threw the first pitch in Game 5 of the Mariners' division series against Cleveland. I barely got it to the plate. How much lab time do you have these days? The institution always comes first. I fortunately get to think about where cancer research should be going; there's a lot of science involved in what I do at the institutional level. Do you miss the lab? I don't that much. For over 50 years or so we've learned a lot about molecular microbiology that can be applied directly to human disease. I am excited about seeing that play out and having a role in it. Your parents didn't attend college. Did they support your decision to do so? My mother was very supportive. In fact, when I was invited to attend Caltech, and looked up the tuition, I said it was impossible, [but] she said things will work out. She was absolutely right. I ended up getting scholarships and things, to pay my way through. Of which papers are you the most proud? What I think is most exciting is when you try to size up a research area that not much is known about, and try to figure out how to get your foot in the door; that takes several years before you figure out how to do that. The first use of photo-microscopy to identify cell cycle mutants, that was a foot in the door.1 And really all of that work culminated very rapidly. One key paper was looking at genetic instability in different cell cycle mutants.2 That work led to discovery of checkpoints.3 The next topic we took up was drug discovery, trying to use genetic approaches in validating drug targets.4 What interests you now? Genetic diversity in the human population, and how that influences disease susceptibility. We're kind of at the stage right now, we're just beginning to figure out how to think about it, and we haven't made a key breakthrough. This is the most fun part of the journey. What do colleagues and/or family give you a hard time about? I guess I feel that I get along with people, but I guess they don't tell me the truth. One of the things that's surprising about me is that people tell me I am intimidating. I don't think I am, for whatever that is worth. What's your idea of relaxation? I really like to have sort of a balanced life. If I have a lot of evenings free and weekends free, where we watch movies, and walk [Emma] the dog, then I can be intense at work, I don't get burned out. [Otherwise] I get stressed. What is your favorite dinner? Do you like wine? I love light French wines, like Côtes du Rhone. I drink a lot of that. We usually eat pretty simply, make rollups with tortillas. That and a good wine is my favorite dinner. Luck seems to have played a significant role in your life; your mother switched your high school at the right time, you've landed the right jobs at the right time, and so on. Absolutely, I feel like [my existaence] has always, and continues to be, a quixotic, random walk through life. I feel entirely dependent on people who have influenced me along the way. Are you a happy man? I am pretty much ecstatic most of the time. References 1. L. H. Hartwell et al., "Genetic control of cell-division cycle in yeast. I. Detection of mutants," Proc Natl Acad Sci, 66:352-9, 1970. 2. L.H. Hartwell, D. Smith, "Altered fidelity of mitotic chromosome transmission in cell-cycle mutants of S. cerevisiae," Genetics, 110:381-95, 1985. 3. L.H. Hartwell, T.A. Weinert, "Checkpoints: Controls that ensure the order of cell cycle events," Science; 246:629-34,1989. 4. L.H. Hartwell et al., "Integrating genetic approaches into the discovery of anticancer drugs," Science, 278:1064-8, 1997.

Leland Hartwell

The Scientist Staff

First Person | Leland Hartwell

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