Dr. Leslie and Rainey Norins: A Sound Investment in the Future

Dr. Leslie Norins (right) is founder and chief executive of Alzheimer's Germ Quest, Inc. Rainey Norins (left), his wife, is co-founder and vice president of the company.

My acquaintance with The Jackson Lab began in a rather unusual way. After graduating Duke Medical School in 1962, I had received a postdoctoral fellowship from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study immunology in Melbourne, Australia with Sir Macfarlane Burnet, Nobel Laureate, at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research.

For specialized research projects, purebred strains of mice were utilized. Often these special mice had to be purchased from the U.S., and when they arrived by airfreight the boxes were marked "JAX." I inquired what this meant. That's how I was informed of The Jackson Laboratory's leading role in global medical research.

Though just a postdoctoral fellow, I decided that if ever I were in a position to "give back," this mysterious JAX institution was deserving of support. Fast forward 50 years, when my wife, Rainey, and I were winding down our decades of successful medical publishing. We had JAX on our mind, so in 2002 we visited the Lab to personally get oriented to its amazing accomplishments, capabilities and research projects. We were impressed with the magnificent work they were doing, and we felt their organization was first class. We met members of the staff and have been a part of the JAX family ever since.