Nahum Sonenberg

Nahum Sonenberg is the discoverer of eIF4E, the mRNA cap-binding protein that is the rate-limiting factor in cap-dependent translation initiation and a major downstream effector of mTOR signaling in cancer. His foundational work establishing the eIF4E/4E-BP1 regulatory axis has been central to understanding how mTOR controls protein synthesis and cell growth. He demonstrated that eIF4E overexpression is oncogenic and sufficient to transform cells. His decades of research on translational control have profoundly influenced cancer biology and drug development targeting protein synthesis.