Prof. Egli studies the beginnings of human life from the fertilized egg to the adult cell affected by disease. The importance is self-evident: what happens in the beginning will affect all that comes later, the pregnancy, the newborn, the child, the adult. Among the questions addressed by his research are if and how genetic disease can be prevented. Dr. Egli received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of Zurich, Switzerland, performed postdoctoral studies at Harvard University and the New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute before he became faculty at Columbia University. For his work, he was recognized by Time Magazine in 2011 for the medical breakthrough of the year and was named among the 100 people who mattered. He is now Associate Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, the Columbia Stem Cell Initiative, and the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center in New York City, USA.