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Dr. Joseph R. Nevins, previously an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, James B. Duke Professor and Chair of the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology in the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, has been a recognized leader in the study of gene regulation and oncogenic mechanisms for over 30 years. This includes his key and seminal studies of cell growth regulation through the discovery of the E2F transcription factor, the discovery of the regulation of E2F by the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor, and the elucidation of the role of these activities in pathways that control cell proliferation and cell fate. The realization that these activities and pathways are critical for the control of cellular proliferation, particularly the decision of cells to enter S phase and commence DNA replication, and that the Rb/E2F pathway is disrupted in virtually every human cancer, underscores the importance of this body of work and the fact that this represents a truly distinguished achievement in cancer research. His accomplishments have been recognized by election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2004. Dr. Nevins retired from Duke University in 2013.