As we reach the end of 2024 and prepare for 2025, we’re taking a moment to look back at some of the highlights and achievements of the last 12 months.
Current and future Lister Fellows
December is always a busy period in the Lister Institute calendar as we work to arrange external peer reviewers for our longlisted candidates for the next year’s Lister Prize. This year, we received 125 applications for the Prize, a great response from a wide range of candidates.
In September 2024 we awarded the Lister Prize to six new Lister Fellows, each of them an exceptional early-career researcher. They received flexible funding of £300,000 to support their ground-breaking research in fields ranging from rare genetic diseases to cell death in tumours.
Our Chair John Iredale and Director Sally Burtles visited five of our 2023 Lister Fellows at their home institutions this year to formally present the Prize and celebrate their research. Next year will see six more Prize Visits to the 2024 Lister Fellows, where we hear more about each Fellow’s work and get to know some of the key people in their professional lives.
Annual Meeting
In September we convened for a successful and well-attended Annual Meeting, which as usual was held at Corpus Christi College in Oxford. We enjoyed an inspiring selection of talks from Lister Fellows, former Fellows and Members of the Institute and relished the chance to connect and share ideas with the wider Lister community.
There were 42 Lister Summer Students this year, several of whom presented posters during the Annual Meeting on their summer placements in the laboratories of current Lister Fellows.
Awards and honours
2024 saw a number of former Fellows and other Members of the Lister Institute recognised for their achievements. Former Chair of the Scientific Committee Patrick Maxwell received the title Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the King’s Birthday Honours 2024 for services to medical research.
We also congratulate former Fellow and Governing Body Member Rebecca Fitzgerald FRS and former Fellow David Komander FRS on becoming Fellows of the Royal Society, and Marius Clore, Michael Eddleston, and Jane McKeating on becoming Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences this year.
A festive message
Lastly, some words from John, our Chairman and Sally, our Director:
“This has been a fantastic year for the Lister Institute with a full calendar of events and achievements. Our Annual Meeting in September was a highlight as always, as were our visits to the 2023 Lister Prize Winners at their home institutions. We have received a high number of applications for next year’s Lister Prize and seen some well-deserved commendations for Members of the Institute from the Royal Society, EMBO and other institutions.
Above all, we have been able to award six outstanding early career scientists substantial funding in the form of the Lister Prize in 2024. Their work will make a meaningful difference to patients’ lives and support the progress of preventive medicine which is at the heart of the Lister Institute and what we do. We wish all our Members, Fellows, Students and everyone in the wider Lister community a relaxing and restorative winter break and a prosperous start to 2025.”
John Iredale, Chairman
“I would like to wish our readers a warm and joyful festive season on behalf of everyone at the Lister Institute. This year has been both busy and productive, with six new Fellows joining the Lister Institute and a large volume of high-quality applications for next year’s Lister Prize. We have also seen a number of changes to our Scientific Committee and Governing Body, with valued colleagues standing down and new ones stepping into their roles ready for a new chapter in 2025. As always, we are inspired and energised by the talent and dedication of the biomedical research community we support, and we celebrate the incredible range of specialist research and pioneering progress our Fellows and Members have achieved in 2024.”
Sally Burtles, Director
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