Memorialising Willy Krek

After a long illness, Willy Krek passed away on 29 August at the age of 56. The biology professor was a key figure in the development of molecular health sciences and personalised medicine at ETH Zurich. The university has lost a passionate researcher and supporter.

In Willy Krek, ETH Zurich has lost an important researcher and supporter, who built bridges between basic science and medical applications. (Photograph: Giulia Marthaler / ETH Zurich)
In Willy Krek, ETH Zurich has lost an important researcher and supporter, who built bridges between basic science and medical applications. (Photograph: Giulia Marthaler / ETH Zurich)

Krek grew up in Carinthia, Austria and studied chemistry at Graz University of Technology. He first came to Switzerland in 1988 when he completed his doctorate at the Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research ISREC in Lausanne.

He continued his scientific career at Harvard University and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston before returning to Switzerland as group leader in the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research in Basel. In 2003, he was appointed a full professor of cell biology at ETH Zurich, where he enthusiastically led the Laboratory for Cell Signalling and Disease Biology in the Department of Biology at the Institute of Molecular Health Sciences until his recent passing.

He combined basic research and medicine

Krek’s research focused on an understanding of the molecular signalling pathways that influence the growth of tumour cells. It was in this field that he wrote highly acclaimed and, at times, ground-breaking studies on the influence of oxygen deficiency (hypoxia) and fructose metabolism. The direct relationship between basic research and medical applications was central to his research and teaching. His research led to numerous scientific publications, formed the basis for the development of new drugs and was the starting point for the foundation of several start-up companies.

“I am both shocked and saddened by the much too early loss of Willy. He was a highly esteemed colleague and an admirable personality,” says ETH President Lino Guzzella. “For more than ten years, Willy Krek was a driving force behind the successful establishment of medical research as a new focus area of this university. His dynamism and courage in combining basic research and medical application was ground-breaking for us.”

A great supporter

As an academic teacher, continues Guzzella, Krek inspired students and staff alike: “His passion for science, his enthusiasm and his energetic support motivated many to devote themselves to the adventure of research. We, the Executive Board and the entire ETH community, are deeply indebted to him.”

In addition to his professional activities, Krek was an expert on various committees within and outside ETH Zurich. For many years, he was chairman of the Pfizer Prize committee and was an advisor to the Pezcoller Foundation and the Dr. Josef Steiner Cancer Foundation. Krek was co-founder of the Swiss Competence Center for Systems Physiology and Metabolic Diseases (CC-SPMD). He also played a key role in establishment of the Competence Center for Personalised Medicine at ETH and the University of Zurich. It was also always important to him to use the latest technology in his research, and he was instrumental in the creation of the NEXUS technology platform.

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