ORIGINS
Founded in 1967 by Dr. Walter A. Shaw, Avanti Polar Lipids. originated from Dr. Shaw’s own need for highly purified egg phosphatidylcholine for use in a lipoprotein lipase assay. The excess material he produced was evaluated and purchased by Grand Island Biological Company (GIBCO, now part of Invitrogen/Thermo Fisher Scientific), and Avanti was born soon thereafter. Dr. Shaw’s vision was to provide scientists with the highest quality lipid products available thereby eliminating the uncertainty of questionable lipid reagents. It is that vision which continues to direct the company today.
TODAY
Since its spartan beginnings in a 900 square foot rented laboratory space, Avanti has established a 25 acre manufacturing campus comprised of 11 buildings which house our manufacturing, formulation, analytical, and administrative units. Operations were moved to the current site in Alabaster, Alabama, in 1990, and we have continued to expand our capabilities and attract talented personnel to develop new and innovative products. With over 120 employees diligently working to provide high quality revolutionary lipid products, we have successfully grown our product offering to well over 2000 unique lipids, antibodies, and lipid research tools while maintaining the founding vision established by Dr. Shaw in 1967. Quite an accomplishment considering we started with a catalog containing only a handful of lipids isolated from plant and animal sources.
By maintaining our commitment to quality on which we were established, Avanti has built a loyal following of customers. We take pride in the amazing things they do with our lipids, and it drives us to provide more innovative tools to advance their research. Each year we see our customer base multiply, not only in North America but globally through our network of distributors. We continue to improve and expand our distribution network to reach more scientists who need “the good stuff”.
Avanti Awards in Lipids
The Avanti Awards in Lipids recognize outstanding research contributions.
WALTER A. SHAW YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARD IN LIPID RESEARCH
This award recognizes outstanding research contributions in the area of lipids by young investigators who are an Assistant professor or equivalent and with no more than 10 years of experience since receiving their degree (PhD and/or MD).
2020/2021 – Jeremy Baskin
2019 – Shu Sin Chng
2018 – John Burke
2017 – Gregory D. Fairn
2016 – Christer S. Ejsing
2015 – Britta Brügger
2014 – Mary L. Kraft
2013 – Tobias Walther
2012 – Peter Espenshade
2011 – Charles E. Chalfant
2010 – Sarah Keller
AVANTI POLAR LIPIDS / EBSA AWARD
This award aims to recognize the most important European scientific contributions in the understanding of Biophysics of lipids, including metabolism, enzymology, structure and membranes.
2021 – Elina Ikonen
2019 – Bruno Antonny
2017 – Jean-Marie Ruysschaert
2015 – J. Antoinette Killian
2013 – Felix Go?i
AVANTI-BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY
This award is given to an investigator for outstanding contributions to our understanding of lipid biophysics.
2021 – Richard Pastor
2020 – Akihiro Kusumi
2019 – Enrico Gratton
2018 – Wonhwa Cho
2017 – Sarah L. Keller
2016 – Philip Yeagle
2015 – Gerald Feigenson
2014 – Michael Brown
2013 – Joseph Zasadzinski
2012 – Huey W. Huang
2011 – Eric Oldfield
2010 – James A. Hamilton
2009 – Stephen H. White
2008 – Ben de Kruijff
2007 – Klaus Gawrisch
2006 – Thomas E. Thompson
2005 – Joachim Seelig
2004 – Thomas J. McIntosh
2003 – John F. Nagle & Stephanie Tristram-Nagle
2001 – Ronald McElhaney
1999 – Richard M. Epand
1998 – Lewis C. Cantley
1997 – Ching-hsien Huang
AVANTI-ASBMB AWARD
This Award recognizes outstanding research contributions in the area of lipids.
2020/2021 – Jean Schaffer
2019 – Vytas Bankaitis
2018 – Dennis Voelker
2017 – Volker Hauke
2016 – Robert V. Farese, Jr.
2015 – Karen Reue
2014 – Sandra Hofmann
2013 – Susan Henry
2012 – George M. Carman
2011 – Yusuf Hannun
2010 – David W. Russell
2009 – Sarah Spiegel
2008 – Alexandra C. Newton
2007 – Scott D. Emr
2006 – Dennis Vance
2005 – William Dowhan
2004 – William L. Smith, Ph.D.
2003 – Robert Bittman
2002 – Christian R.H. Raetz
2000 – Edward A. Dennis
1998 – Lewis C. Cantley
1996 – Robert M. Bell
AVANTI-OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD IN BIOACTIVE LIPIDS IN CANCER, INFLAMMATION, & RELATED DISEASE
This award recognizes outstanding achievement in the area of lipids.
2019 – Junken Aoki, Ph.D.
2019 — Jesper Z. Haegstromm, Ph.D.
2019 — Sarah Spiegel, M.D.
2017 – Bruce D. Hammock, Ph.D.
2017 — Jorge H. Capdevila, Ph.D.
2017 — Darryl C. Zeldin, M.D.
2015 – Timothy Hla, Ph.D.
2013 – Takao Shimizu, M.D., Ph.D.
2013 — Andrew J. Dannenberg, M.D.
2011– Carlo Patrono, M.D.
2011 — Garret A. FitzGerald, M.D.
2009 – Edward J. Goetzl, M.D.
THE CATHERINE E. COSTELLO AWARD FOR WOMEN SCIENTISTS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY – SPONSORED BY AVANTI POLAR LIPIDS, INC.
This award recognizes a woman who has made substantial contributions in mass spectrometry in her professional work and is dedicated to the success of the laboratory’s mass spectrometry program.
2020 — Sarah Riley