David Baltimore, Nobel laureate in physiology and medicine, has delivered a lecture on ‘Gene therapy and the future of medicine’ as part of Qatar Foundation’s (QF) Distinguished Lecture Series.The lecture, which took place at Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, was widely attended by students, researchers and members of the public from across Qatar. It covered the key aspects of recent advances and future perspectives in gene therapy and was followed by a lively discussion session with Professor Baltimore.During his long and illustrious career, Professor Baltimore has contributed widely to the understanding of cancer, Aids and the molecular basis of the immune response. His present research focuses on ways of genetically improving immune function in the fight against cancer and Aids. In his lecture, Professor Baltimore explained how gene therapy could herald a new era of medical practice and gave an overview of these exciting prospects at the lecture.Professor Baltimore said: “We have been working on ways of genetically improving immune function in the fight against cancer and Aids and have had some pre-clinical and beginning clinical success.”The lecture series, which is run by QF Research Division, plays host to renowned scientists, who are invited to QF to share their knowledge and experience, stimulate engagement with interested parties and lay the foundations for potential research collaborations. Groundbreaking researchers and Nobel laureates who have taken part so far include Lord Ara Darzi (former UK secretary of health), Peter Agre (Nobel winner in chemistry 2003) and Robert Grubbs (Nobel winner in chemistry 2005).