“Dr. Campbell’s legacy includes both his seminal research, as well as decades of mentorship that have shaped the next generation of physician scientists and biomedical researchers,” says Denise Jamieson, MD, MPH, UI vice president for medical affairs and the Tyrone D. Artz Dean of the Carver College of Medicine. “Faculty like Dr. Campbell embody the university’s role as an engine of scientific advancement and medical innovation, driven by a commitment to discovery and a focus on improving and changing lives. We are thrilled to see him recognized for his many meaningful contributions.”
Discoveries reveal targets for treating muscular dystrophies
For over four decades, Campbell has been a UI faculty member and has led pioneering research on muscular dystrophies, a group of progressive, degenerative conditions that cause weakness and wasting in skeletal muscle. Campbell’s discoveries have created a scientific foundation for the development of therapeutic approaches like gene therapy that have demonstrated success in recovering muscle strength and function in animal models of these diseases. These contributions have moved the medical community closer to translating molecular knowledge into clinical therapies for patients with these muscular dystrophies.
Horwitz Prize recognizes scientific advances for Duchenne muscular dystrophy
The Horwitz Prize recognizes Campbell’s contributions to understanding Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a severe genetic disorder affecting approximately 1 in every 3,500 to 5,000 male births worldwide. The disease is caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene, which is essential for the stability of muscle fibers and the heart. Without intervention, DMD begins to impair mobility in adolescence, and can progress rapidly, causing early death from heart and lung failure.
Campbell's pioneering work revealed that dystrophin proteins form structural scaffolds with glycoproteins — proteins with sugar molecules attached to them — inside the cell and disrupting these scaffolds destabilizes muscle fibers. This work provided essential insights into the biological causes of several forms of muscular dystrophy, which has profound implications for the diagnosis and treatment of these diseases.
The collective work of Campbell, Kunkel, and Olson honored by the Horwitz Prize has advanced scientific understanding of muscular dystrophies and brought real hope of potential therapies for the thousands of families affected by these devastating diseases.
About Kevin Campbell
As director of the Senator Paul D. Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Specialized Research Center, Campbell has further elevated the University of Iowa’s national and international profile in progressive muscle disorders. Under his leadership, the center has become a hub for advanced genetic research and therapeutic development aimed at improving the knowledge of, and accelerating progress against, rare and complex genetic disorders. Along with the Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Specialized Research Center, Campbell is also affiliated with the Iowa Neuroscience Institute and the Cardiovascular Research Center.
Campbell received his Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Manhattan College and his doctoral degree in biophysics from the University of Rochester. He did his postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Toronto in 1979 and became an assistant professor at the University of Iowa in 1981. Campbell is the Roy J. Carver Professor and Chair of the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and Director of the Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Specialized Research Center at the University of Iowa and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator (Emerita).
About the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
The Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize was established in 1967 by the late S. Gross Horwitz. It is named in honor of the donor's mother, Louisa Gross Horwitz, who was the daughter of Dr. Samuel David Gross (1805-89), a prominent Philadelphia surgeon who served as president of the American Medical Association and wrote “Systems of Surgery.” Of the 118 Horwitz Prize winners to date, 55 have gone on to also win Nobel Prizes.
The 2025 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize lectures and dinner will take place early next year (2026), with a date to be shared on the Horwitz Prize lecture website.