Peter J. Ratcliffe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Peter J. Ratcliffe
FRS FMedSci
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Ratcliffe in 2019
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Peter John Ratcliffe
14 May 1954 |
| Education | Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College |
| Awards | Fellow of the Royal Society Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research Physiological Society Annual Review Prize Lecture Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine Knight Bachelor Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences EMBO Membership Baly Medal Grand Prix scientifique de la Fondation Lefoulon-Delalande Robert J. and Claire Pasarow Foundation Medical Research Award Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Francis Crick Institute Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford |
Sir Peter John Ratcliffe is a British doctor and scientist. He was born on May 14, 1954. He is known for his important work on how our bodies react when they don't get enough oxygen. For this discovery, he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2019.
Sir Peter is a type of doctor called a nephrologist, which means he specializes in kidney diseases. He worked as a doctor at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, England. He also taught at the University of Oxford for many years.
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Early Life and Education
Peter Ratcliffe was born in Lancashire, England, on May 14, 1954. His father was a lawyer.
He went to Lancaster Royal Grammar School from 1965 to 1972. After that, he studied medicine at the University of Cambridge and then at St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College. He finished his medical degree in 1978.
Later, he trained in kidney medicine at University of Oxford. He focused on how oxygen affects the kidneys. In 1987, he earned a higher medical degree from the University of Cambridge.
His Career in Science
In 1990, Peter Ratcliffe received a special grant to study how cells react to low oxygen levels. This condition is called hypoxia.
From 1992 to 2004, he was a senior research fellow at Jesus College, Oxford. In 2003, he became a professor and head of the Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine at Oxford. In 2016, he started working as a Clinical Research Director at the Francis Crick Institute, while still keeping a role at Oxford.
Amazing Oxygen Discoveries
In 1989, Sir Peter Ratcliffe set up a lab at University of Oxford. He wanted to understand how the body controls a hormone called erythropoietin (EPO). EPO is made by the kidneys and tells the body to make more red blood cells. The kidneys release EPO when there isn't enough oxygen.
Sir Peter wanted to know exactly how the kidneys sense low oxygen. His research showed that the ability to sense oxygen wasn't just in the kidneys. Other organs like the spleen, brain, and testes could also sense low oxygen and start making EPO. He even found a way to make other cells sense oxygen by giving them certain genetic material.
Working with other scientists, William Kaelin Jr. and Gregg L. Semenza, Sir Peter helped figure out the exact steps cells use to sense oxygen. They found that a protein called hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF) is key. When there's enough oxygen, another protein (VHL) attaches to HIF and causes it to be destroyed. But when oxygen levels drop, VHL can't attach to HIF. This allows HIF to stay active and tell the body to make more EPO. This whole process happens very quickly, helping the body react fast to low oxygen.
This same pathway is also active in many cancer tumors. It helps them grow new blood vessels to get the nutrients they need. Understanding this process has led to new medicines. These medicines can help people with anaemia (low red blood cells) and kidney failure by encouraging their bodies to make more red blood cells.
Personal Life
Peter Ratcliffe married Fiona Mary MacDougall in 1983.
Awards and Honors
Sir Peter Ratcliffe has received many awards for his important work on hypoxia. Some of them include:
- The Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine (2009)
- The Canada Gairdner International Award (2010)
- The Lasker Award (2016)
- Buchanan Medal of the Royal Society (2017)
- Massry Prize (2018)
- The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2019) – shared with William Kaelin and Gregg Semenza, for discovering how cells sense and adapt to oxygen.
He was made a knight in 2014 for his contributions to medicine.
Images for kids
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In Spanish: Peter Ratcliffe para niños
