Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1986 for
his distinguished work in genetics. Since 1991, he has been one of the Royal
Society's Research Professors, he works in the Department of Genetics at the
University of Leicester, and his Royal Society professorship is funded with
support from the Wolfson Foundation.
Research interest: Genome diversity
During early investigations into the variation and evolution of human genes,
Sir Alec Jeffreys discovered a remarkable property concealed within human DNA.
"We'd got to the point where we could detect single copies of human genes which
led to one of the first observations of introns, non-coding sections of DNA
that split up genes. But when I came to Leicester in 1977, I wanted to move
away from the study of split genes, and to marry the new techniques of
molecular biology with human genetics," he explains.
His plan was to use gene detection techniques not only to look at the
structures of genes but also to understand inherited variation between
people. "We knew about heritable variation in gene products such as blood
groups, but we were looking for inherited variation at a far more fundamental
level, namely in DNA itself.
Source: Royal Society
Dr Tim Hunt is a Biochemist. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge in the Department of Biochemistry entitled "The Synthesis of Haemoglobin". In 1982 he discovered cyclins, which turned out to be "Key Regulator(s) of the Cell Cycle", and led to a share of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2001 together with Lee Hartwell and Paul Nurse. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society and many other distinguished societies. Dr Tim Hunt is a Principal Scientist at Cancer Research UK. His main research interest is in Cell Cycle Control. Cell cycle transitions the onset of S-phase, entry into mitosis and exit from mitosis require altered activity of the appropriate cyclin-dependent protein kinases (CDKs): thus cyclin E together with Cdk2 normally initiates DNA replication, and cyclins A and B together with Cdk1 promote entry into mitosis. The decline in Cdk activity by programmed proteolysis at the end of mitosis is equally critical for cell cycle progression. If the kinase levels stay high, cells arrest at the end of mitosis. Dr. Tim Hunt is interested to understand how CDKs trigger cell cycle transitions, and how the timing of cyclin proteolysis is regulated. (adapted from Cancer Research UK and Trinity College Cambridge)
Abstract
Cancer can develop when cells incur damage to their genome and proliferate
without control: hence, faithful recovery of damaged genomic information is
extremely important for growing cells to prevent carcinogenesis. Interestingly,
increasing evidence indicate critical role of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs)
in this process, which is classically known as master regulators of cell
proliferation. Nevertheless, it is largely unknown how CDK activities are
linked to repair of damaged DNA at the molecular level.
Our main research interest concerns the role of CDK phosphorylation of the
familial breast cancer susceptibility gene product, BRCA2. Inherited mutations
in BRCA2 confer a strong predisposition to breast, ovarian and other cancers.
The underlying basis of carcinogenesis is thought to be linked to defects in
DNA repair. We have previously shown that BRCA2 is phosphorylated by CDKs at
multiple sites, and that this phosphorylation plays a important role in error-
free repair of broken DNA. We discuss further how BRCA2 is regulated by CDKs
phosphorylation for its role in DNA repair at molecular level, and its
relationship to other cellar events in the presence of DNA break.
Abstract
Magnetic Resonance Imagining (MRI) emerged from nuclear magnetic resonance
(NMR) in the early 1970s. It was clear from the first images that a
conceptual breakthrough was required to speed up the imaging process from
around one hour for those early images to something more acceptable in medical
diagnosis. This step forward came in 1975–6 with the realization that single-
shot images could be obtained in principle by exploiting the properties of spin-
echoes commonly used in NMR. The thinking was that a spin-echo train, produced
by rapid periodic reversal of the magnetic field gradient, contained picture
information in one dimension. To encode the data along the orthogonal axis, a
low level read gradient is applied while the spin-echoes are forming. This
process is commonly known as echo-planar imaging (EPI). Typical imaging times
for EPI lie in the range 20–60 msec. Rapid gradient modulation causes high
acoustic noise levels. We are currently engaged in trying out methods to
reduce noise.
Background
Sir Peter Mansfield is a fellow of the Royal Society. He is a British physicist
who was awarded the 2003 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his
discoveries concerning magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The Nobel Prize was
shared with Paul Lauterbur, who also contributed to the development of MRI. Sir
Peter is Emeritus Professor of Physics at University of Nottingham In the early
1970s, Sir Peter's vision allowed him not only to understand how to transform
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance into a medical imaging technique, but also to
foresee what would be required to make the technique clinically useful and to
identify many of the potential areas of application for MRI in clinical
medicine. Over the following decades he has been driven to realise these
potential applications, with his work often being years ahead of its time. He
is responsible for introducing a new understanding of important aspects of the
physics of NMR and image formation, as well as the invention of many of the
techniques and features of the scanner equipment that were needed to make
clinical MRI a reality. Today, MRI scanners are used in hospitals all over the
world and over 60 million investigations with MRI are carried out every year.
Award of the Nobel Prize is testament to the profound impact that this eminent
physicists work has had on the practice of medicine.
Abstract
Oxygen evolving life may have begun on earth about 3,400 billion years ago. The
interpretation of geochemical evidence, for example in the Buck Reef Chert, is
disputed, but evidence from fossilised stromatolites in Australia is perhaps
more convincing. Modern oxygen evolving photosynthesis requires more than 1000
proteins, many of them organised in complex membrane bound structures. Light
energy from the sun is trapped in carbohydrates and fats, providing our food
with its calorific value. We release the energy by respiration, consuming in
the process most of the oxygen that we have breathed in. More than 1000
proteins are involved in cellular respiration, and about 100 of them proteins
are organised in the inner membranes of mitochondria as the respiratory enzyme
complexes that function as molecule machines to convert the redox energy
derived from energy in food-stuffs into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the
energy currency of biology. The final synthetic step is achieved by a
remarkable molecular machine with a mechanical rotary action. Its closest man-
made analogue is the Wankel rotary engine. The rotor of the biological machine
is driven at about 100-200 rpm by a trans-membrane proton-motive force
(analogous to the electron-motive force in electricity). The mechanical action
of the rotor drives the chemistry of the formation of ATP from ADP and
phosphate in the three catalytic sites of the enzyme. How this biological
machine works, the medical consequences of dysfunctional energy conversion, and
the possible evolutionary origins of the rotary machine will be discussed in
the lecture.
Background
Professor Sir John Walker was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1997,
together with Professor Paul Boyer, for their elucidation of the enzymatic
mechanism underlying the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate. His award winning
work, which provided insight into the way that life forms produce energy, was
conducted at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, at the University of
Cambridge.
Professor Walker is the Director of the Medical Research Councils (MRC) Dunn
Human Nutrition Unit in Cambridge. He is the Chairman of the MIB Scientific
Advisory Board.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society, and a foreign member of the US National
Academy of Sciences, of LAccademia Nazionale dei Lincei and of the Royal
Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is a Fellow of Sidney Sussex
College, Cambridge, and an Honorary Fellow of St Catherines College, Oxford.
He was knighted in 1999 for his contributions to the field of molecular
biology. He has received honorary doctorates of science from numerous
universities, including UMIST.
As a replacement for the lecture that has been canceled on Wednesday 26th
November, OUSS has organized a subsidized extended tour of Bodleian Library.
This will cover:
Visit Duke Humfrey's medieval library, still in use today but where
generations of famous scholars have studied through the ages, amongst them, 5
kings, 40 Nobel Prize winners, 25 British Prime Ministers and writers such as
Oscar Wilde, C S Lewis and J R R Tolkien. Explore the 17th century Convocation
House and Court, where Parliament was held in the Civil War. Plus a variety of
reading rooms each with their own individual splendour including the
architectural icon of Oxford, the Radcliffe Camera, the first rotunda library
built in Britain. Explore the hidden underground tunnels and passages leading
to the bookstacks where over 7 million volumes occupy nearly 188km (117miles)
of shelving. Bodleian restricted number of visitor at a time, so place will be
allocated on first PAY, first serve basis. The tour start at 11.30 and last
about 1.5 hours. Normal price is 12 pounds, but this event is subsidize to 6
pounds, ONLY FOR OUSS MEMBER. Non-member can still join the tour at full price.
Payment can be done in cash if you attend today seminar or pidge a cheque made
payable to "OU Scientific Society" to Siu-Po Lee, Exeter College.
Professor Blakemore was President of the British Association for the
Advancement of Science in 1997-1998 and Chairman in 2001-2004. He has been
described by the Royal Society as "one of Britain's most influential
communicators of science". He is committed to promoting dialogue between
scientists and the public, and to defending medical research using animals
despite regularly receiving threats of violence from animal rights extremists.
Over the years he has contributed to radio and television programmes, including
the BBC Reith Lecture in 1976 and the 13-part BBC2 series The Mind Machine.
He has published several books for the general public including Mechanics of the
Mind (for which he won the Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science), Images and
Understanding, Mindwaves, The Mind Machine, Gender and Society
and The Oxford Companion to the Body.
Professor Blakemore studied Natural Sciences at Cambridge and then completed a
PhD at the University of California in Berkeley. In 1979 he became a Waynflete
Professor of Physiology at Oxford University. From 1996–2003 he was the
Director of the Medical Research Council Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience at
Oxford, and he has been Chief Executive of the MRC since 2003.
Lecture 1: "The economic outlook: The news behind the headlines"
As western economies are confronted by recession, the global outlook looks bleak. Learn more about the major trends affecting todays economy and how you can approach these commercial issues when preparing for an interview.
Date: Thursday 23 October 2008
Time: 6-8pm
Location: St Johns College, Garden Quad Auditorium, OX1 3JP
Lecture 2: "The rising cost of living"
With the cost of living hitting the headlines on a daily basis, rising commodity prices is one of the key issues affecting life for many in the UK. Learn more about the drivers of these price rises and what they for business, non-profit organisations and consumers. The lecture will provide the latest insights from a number of industries - great interview preparation on one of todays hot topics!
Date: Tuesday 4 November
Time: 6-8pm
Location: Saïd Business School, Lecture Room 5, Park End Street, Oxford, OX1 1HP
Lecture 3: "Bursting the credit bubble"
The lecture will consolidate your understanding of the main drivers of the credit bubble, how it came to an end and the implications for the financial services companies and their customers in the UK and global economy.
Date: Tuesday 11 November
Time: 6-8pm
Location: Saïd Business School, Rhodes Trust Lecture Theatre, Park End Street, Oxford, OX1 1HP