Liz Sockett facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Liz Sockett
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|---|---|
| Born |
Renee Elizabeth Sockett
1962 (age 62–63) |
| Alma mater | University of Leeds (BSc) University College London (PhD) |
| Awards | Daiwa Adrian Prize (2007) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Microbiology Bdellovibrio |
| Institutions | University of Oxford University of Nottingham University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign |
| Thesis | Biochemistry of motility and taxis in purple photosynthetic bacteria (1986) |
Renee Elizabeth Sockett, born in 1962, is a professor and microbiologist. She works at the University of Nottingham. Professor Sockett is a top expert on a special type of bacteria called Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus. These bacteria are unique because they are "predators" – they hunt and eat other bacteria!
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Early Life and Learning
Liz Sockett was born in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1962. She studied biochemistry at the University of Leeds. In 1983, she earned her Bachelor of Science degree. After that, she went to University College London (UCL). There, she earned her PhD in 1986. Her research was about how purple bacteria move and react to their surroundings.
Amazing Career and Research
After finishing her PhD, Professor Sockett worked as a researcher. She worked at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign from 1986 to 1988. Then, she moved to the University of Oxford from 1988 to 1990. In 1991, she became a teacher at the University of Nottingham. She was promoted several times, becoming a full Professor in 2005.
Discovering Predator Bacteria
Professor Sockett's research team first studied bacteria that use sunlight for energy. But then, they became very interested in Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus. This amazing bacterium is a predator! It hunts and eats other bacteria. This includes harmful bacteria that cause sickness and are hard to treat with medicines.
How Bdellovibrio Attacks
Professor Sockett's lab has studied how Bdellovibrio invades other bacteria. They looked closely at its genome, which is like its instruction manual. Her team found special genes in Bdellovibrio. These genes help it make enzymes. Enzymes are like tiny tools that break down parts of other bacteria. They can even break down the DNA of the prey bacteria.
Professor Sockett is now looking at how these predator bacteria could help us. She is studying if Bdellovibrio can treat infections. Especially those caused by bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics.
Bdellovibrio and Zebrafish
Professor Sockett's group worked with other scientists to study Bdellovibrio. They used tiny zebrafish for their experiments. Some zebrafish were infected with a harmful bacterium called Shigella flexneri. This bacterium can cause serious illness in humans.
The scientists then gave Bdellovibrio to the infected zebrafish. They found that Bdellovibrio could kill the Shigella bacteria. It also worked with the zebrafish's own immune system. This helped the zebrafish survive the infection.
How Bdellovibrio Gets Inside
Professor Sockett's team also worked with another scientist, Erkin Kuru. They used special glowing chemicals to see how Bdellovibrio invades its prey. They made an amazing discovery! Bdellovibrio makes a small, strong "porthole" in the wall of its prey. It then squeezes through this tiny hole. Once inside, it seals the hole from the inside.
She also works with other scientists who study the tiny structures of Bdellovibrio enzymes. And others who study the walls of bacterial cells.
Sharing Science
Professor Sockett is great at explaining science to everyone. She wants more young people to be interested in microbiology. In 2006, she won the Peter Wildy prize for this work. Her prize lecture was called Not Just Germs - Bringing Bacteria to Life. She is a strong supporter of sharing science with the public.
Awards and Honors
Professor Sockett has received many important awards for her work. In 2022, she was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). This was for her great contributions to microbiology.
She was also interviewed on a science radio show called The Life Scientific in 2017. Here are some of her other awards:
- 2019: Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. This is a very high honor for scientists.
- 2017: Elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.
- 2007: Won the Daiwa-Adrian Prize for science work between Britain and Japan.
- 2006: Received the Society for General Microbiology Peter Wildy Prize.
- 2000: Won the University of Nottingham Lord Dearing Award.
- 2000: Received the Royal Society / BAAS Millennium Award.
