to Gcn5p, a known transcriptional co-activator in yeast. This was the first time that histone acetyltransferases were connected to DNA transcription activation, verifying Vincent Allfrey's hypothesis in the 1960s that histone acetylation regulates transcription. Following this seminal report, Allis continued studying histone acetylation, discovering more histone acetyltransferases, including TAF1 (part of the transcription factor TFIID needed to initiate transcription). Allis also branched off to researching histone phosphorylation and histone methylation. He linked histone phosphorylation to mitosis and mitogen stimulation, and established a synergistic relationship between histone phosphorylation and acetylation. He also determined the role of methylation at lysine 9 of histone H3, identified SET domain-containing proteins as histone methyltransferase, and found that histone ubiquitylation regulates histone methylation. In 2000, Allis and Brian Strahl proposed the "histone code hypothesis", which states that DNA transcription is largely regulated by histone modifications. Later, Allis (together with Thomas Jenuwein) explicitly associated the histone code with epigenetics, and recognized the clinical significance of histone modifications, especially in cancers. In more recent years, his attention turned to "oncohistones", which are histones with mutations that distort normal histone modifications, leading to cancers. Honors and awards Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2001) Dickson Prize in Medicine (2002) Massry Prize (2003) Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences (2004) Member of the National Academy of Sciences (2005) Distinguished Alumnus Award, University of Cincinnati College of Arts and Sciences (2007) Gairdner Foundation International Award (2007) ASBMB-Merck Award (2008) Lewis S. Rosenstiel Award for Distinguished Work in Basic Medical Research (2010) Japan Prize (2014) Grand Prix Charles-Leopold Mayer (2014) Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences (2015) Gruber Prize in Genetics (2016) March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology (2017) Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research (2018) Member of the National Academy of Medicine (2019) Albany Medical Center Prize (2022) Allis was a member of Phi Beta Kappa when he graduated from the University of Cincinnati. The C. David Allis Mentorship Fund for Young Scientists at the Rockefeller University was established in his honor. References 1951 births 2023 deaths Scientists from Cincinnati American molecular biologists Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences University of Cincinnati alumni Indiana University alumni University of Rochester faculty Rockefeller University faculty Syracuse University faculty Baylor College of Medicine faculty Massry Prize recipients University of Virginia School of Medicine faculty Members of the National Academy