Gillian Griffiths facts for kids

Gillian Margaret Griffiths is a famous British scientist. She studies cells and the immune system. She was one of the first to discover how immune cells release special substances. These substances help them fight off diseases. She also found important proteins and ways that control how certain immune cells, called cytotoxic T lymphocytes, work.

What Professor Griffiths Studies Now

Professor Griffiths is a top expert in cell biology and immunology. She works at the University of Cambridge in England. There, she leads a research lab at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research. From 2013 to 2017, she was even the director of this institute.

In 2025, she will become the head of the Department of Cell Biology at Yale School of Medicine in the United States. Her team uses powerful microscopes to watch cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) as they destroy cancer cells. They also use other methods to understand how these cells work.

Recently, her lab found new connections. They learned how tiny parts inside cells, called mitochondria, help CTLs kill bad cells. They also found out how T cell signals stop after fighting. Plus, they discovered how new genetic instructions help CTLs get into groups of target cells.

Her Journey in Science

When Gillian Griffiths was younger, she thought she might want to study animals and their environments. This field is called ecology. But she chose a different path for her science career.

She started by studying immunology at University College London. Immunology is the study of the body's immune system. She continued her studies at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge. There, she earned her PhD. Her supervisor was a Nobel Prize winner named César Milstein.

Awards and Special Honours

Professor Griffiths' research gets a lot of support from the Wellcome Trust. This is a big charity that funds science. She has received important research awards from them many times.

She is also a Fellow at King's College, Cambridge. In 2013, she was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society. This is a very high honour for scientists in the United Kingdom. Her nomination said that she made huge discoveries in how immune cells work. She showed that these cells use special ways to release substances. She also found the proteins and methods that control this process. Her work has helped us understand how a part of the cell, called the centrosome, helps cells release things.

• In 2019, she received the Buchanan Medal from the Royal Society. This award is given for important discoveries in medical sciences.