Dr. Gary K. Michelson revolutionized spinal surgery, won a landmark lawsuit worth $1.35B, and has spent the ensuing years improving the world through his ambitious family of foundations that promote education, animal welfare, and medical research.

Harvard bioengineer David Mooney spends lots of time thinking about novel ways to fight cancer. Which is why it might seem surprising, at first, to hear Mooney talk about his latest project: creating a swift, simple vaccine that will help save the lives of stray cats and dogs, not cancer patients.

Hundreds of millions of stray cats and dogs are estimated to exist worldwide. Many end up in shelters where they are euthanized. One man is offering a $25 million prize to spur research that will keep fewer unwanted animals from being born.

Dr. Jonathan LaMarre, Biomedical Sciences, is looking at looking at ways to target and disrupt small RNA pathways that control the development of sperm cells and egg cells in dogs and cats.

Colin E. Bishop, Ph.D.’s, usual role at the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s Institute for Regenerative Medicine is to apply the techniques of genetics and developmental biology to the regeneration of human organs.

The potential lifesaving impact of a safe, easy-to-administer, and permanent contraceptive is enormous. Imagine if you could give your pet a pill rather than take him or her to the vet to be fixed. No stress for your pet, and no stress for you worrying about anesthesia or the risks of surgery.

Michelson Prize & Grants, a program of the Los Angeles-based Found Animals Foundation, has announced grants totaling more than $11.5 million to scientists working to develop a non-surgical sterilant for cats and dogs.

Numbers are regularly tossed around like pennies into a fountain as to the quantity of dogs and cats entering US shelters each year. As claimed by the World Society for the Protection of Animals there are 6 to 8 million dogs and cats that enter shelters in the United States.

Prize sponsors, like those in centuries past, say that offering financial incentives gets new people thinking about old problems.