Here at the Lister Institute we work with distinguished scientists from across the UK and Republic of Ireland who have gained significant recognition in their field at a variety of levels.
We also maintain a strong and active community of members, current and former Fellows, and other friends of the Institute who regularly make major contributions to the fields of medicine and biomedical sciences.
In this article we share a few pieces of news over the last few months from the Lister community, demonstrating some of the successes that our funding and support is helping members to achieve through their research.
Two new Fellows of the Royal Society
Professor Anant Parekh of the Centre of Integrative Physiology at the University of Oxford and Professor Gurdyal Besra of the School of Biosciences at the University of Birmingham have both been named as Fellows of the Royal Society in 2019.
The Royal Society is one of the most distinguished and well-known professional research bodies in the world. There are approximately 1,600 Fellows and Foreign Members of the Society, which includes around 80 Nobel Laureates. Only up to 52 Fellows and 10 Foreign Members are elected every year and it is considered a significant honour to become a member.
Professor Anant Parekh is a highly distinguished academic and member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Physiology, Cell Calcium and BMC Physiology. His primary research focus is on intracellular calcium signalling and how changes in calcium can engender a wide range of cellular responses. You can find out more about Anant on the University of Oxford website here.
Professor Gurdyal Besra is head of a team investigating the physiology of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis cell wall and the potential role of iNKT/CD1d therapeutics. He is a widely published and cited researcher and is also the Bardrick Professor of Microbial Physiology and Chemistry at the University of Birmingham. You can find out more about his work and career here.
Professor Geoffrey Smith’s recent awards
Professor Geoffrey Smith is Head of the Department of Pathology at the University of Cambridge and in 2018 he was awarded the Marjory Stephenson Prize Lecture from the Microbiology Society.
This prestigious prize is given to an individual researcher who has made exceptional contributions to the discipline of microbiology. A cash award is given along with the opportunity for the winner to deliver a lecture on their work to the Society and Professor Smith’s lecture was entitled Vaccinia virus: a portrait of a poxvirus.
This award was followed by the Leeuwenhoek Medal and Lecture 2020 given by the Royal Society this year. This biennial lectureship is named after the Dutch microscopist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek FRS, often referred to as the ‘Father of Microbiology’, and rewards excellence in the fields of microbiology, bacteriology, virology, mycology and parasitology, and microscopy.
Professor Smith’s research focuses on a variety of areas in microbiology and vaccinology, in particular the vaccinia virus – the vaccine that eradicated smallpox.
A globally-renowned scientist, professor Smith has received several awards throughout his career (such as the 1992 Fleming Award of the Society for General Microbiology) and currently chairs the World Health Organization (WHO) Advisory Committee on Variola Virus Research. You can find out more about his work on the University of Cambridge website here.
Sarah Teichmann wins 2020 Biochemical Society GlaxoSmithKline award
This award recognises the outstanding contributions of twelve scientists and early career researchers in the field of biochemicals.
Dr Teichmann is Head of Cellular Genetics at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and carries out research into the immune system using genomics and bioinformatics approaches. You can find out more about her work here.
We are delighted to see so many of our valued Fellows and Members earning recognition for their work in the field.
The Lister Institute is very proud of the quality of applicants who apply for our research prizes every year and the support and mentorship that previous winners are willing to provide to new recipients.
Thanks for reading and please stay tuned for more news from the Lister Institute very soon!
