Julian Downward facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Julian Downward
FRS FMedSci
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| Born | 25 October 1960 |
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| Website | crick |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Cancer biology |
| Thesis | The structure and function of the receptor for epidermal growth factor (1986) |
| Doctoral advisor | Michael Waterfield |
| Other academic advisors | Robert Weinberg |
Julian Downward, born on October 25, 1960, is a very important scientist who studies cancer. He works as an Associate Research Director at the Francis Crick Institute and is also a Senior Group Leader at the Institute of Cancer Research. He used to lead a special lab at the London Research Institute that studied how cells communicate. He also helps decide what gets published in a famous science magazine called Cell.
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Julian Downward's Education and Early Discoveries
Julian Downward went to Eton College and then studied Natural Sciences at Clare College, Cambridge. He earned a top degree there.
Studying Cell Growth and Cancer
For his PhD, Julian Downward worked with Michael Waterfield at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. He studied something called the Epidermal growth factor receptor. This is a protein on cells that helps them grow. In 1984, he found that this protein was very similar to a gene from a bird virus that can cause cancer.
Finding the HER2 Gene
This important discovery helped scientists find a gene called ErbB2/HER2. This gene is often found in large amounts in certain types of breast cancer. Because of this, scientists were able to create a special medicine called trastuzumab to treat these cancers. From 1986 to 1989, Julian Downward continued his research with Robert Weinberg at the Whitehead Institute in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Understanding Cancer: Julian Downward's Research
Julian Downward's main research focuses on understanding cancer biology. He has made big contributions to how we understand what goes wrong in cells when cancer starts.
How Cells Communicate and Cancer Starts
His work on a group of proteins called Ras has been very important. These proteins act like switches inside cells, helping them communicate and grow. When Ras proteins are faulty, they can cause cells to grow out of control, leading to cancer.
Key Discoveries in Cancer Research
- He was the first to show that Ras proteins are normally controlled by signals from outside the cell.
- He figured out how growth factors (signals that tell cells to grow) make Ras active.
- He proved that active Ras proteins connect with and turn on another protein called RAF kinase. This starts a chain reaction that helps cells grow.
- Julian Downward also discovered that another important protein, PI 3-kinase, is also activated by Ras. This is important for controlling whether cells live or die.
- His research showed that for cancer to develop, Ras needs to work with several other proteins. These proteins help cancer cells grow, change their shape, and avoid programmed cell death.
- He found that signals from outside the cell, like how cells stick together, can activate the PI 3-kinase pathway. This pathway helps prevent cells from dying.
- He showed that when cancer-causing Ras activates this pathway, it allows cancer cells to grow even when they are not attached to other cells.
Finding Weaknesses in Cancer Cells
More recently, Julian Downward has been looking for special weaknesses in cancer cells that have the faulty Ras gene. He uses advanced methods to study many genes at once and tests his ideas using models of lung cancer. This work aims to find new ways to fight cancer.
Awards and Special Recognitions
Julian Downward has received many important awards for his scientific work:
- He was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 2005. This is a very high honor for scientists in the UK.
- He also became a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2009.
- He was a member of the Faculty of 1000, a group that highlights important scientific papers, from 2001 to 2005.
- He has been a member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation since 1995.
- In 2012, he became an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians.
- In 2022, he was elected a member of the Academia Europaea.
Julian Downward's Family Life
Julian Downward is the son of Major General Sir Peter Aldcroft Downward. He has three daughters.
