Allan Balmain facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Allan Balmain
FRS FRSE
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Balmain in 2015
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| Alma mater | University of Glasgow |
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| Thesis | Studies in the diterpenoid field (1969) |
Allan Balmain is a British scientist who studies cancer. He is a professor at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) in the United States. He is known for his important work in understanding how cancer develops.
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Allan Balmain's Education
Allan Balmain went to the University of Glasgow in Scotland. He studied chemistry and earned his first degree in 1966. He continued his studies there and received his PhD in 1969.
Awards and Special Recognition
Allan Balmain has received several important awards for his scientific work.
Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
In 1995, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE). This is a special honor given to top scientists in Scotland.
Fellow of the Royal Society
In 2015, he was also chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS). This is one of the highest honors for scientists in the United Kingdom.
His election certificate explained why he received this award. It said that Allan Balmain was a pioneer in using mice to study cancer. He used mice as a "model system" to understand how cancer works at a very detailed level. This includes looking at the genetics, molecular biology, and cells involved.
His experiments helped show the first link between how cancer starts and being exposed to things that cause cancer. He also found out how specific changes in genes can lead to cancer becoming more serious. His work greatly improved our understanding of why some people are more likely to get cancer than others.
Allan Balmain's creative use of mouse genetics has led to new ways of seeing how cancer pathways are built. It also showed how complex interactions play a role in a person's risk of getting cancer.
