Richard Treisman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sir Richard Treisman
FRS FMedSci
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Treisman in 2015
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| Born | 7 October 1954 |
| Education | Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School |
| Alma mater | Christ's College, Cambridge University College London |
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| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Francis Crick Institute Harvard University University of Cambridge Laboratory of Molecular Biology |
| Thesis | The structures of polyoma virus-specific nuclear and cytoplasmic RNA molecules (1981) |
| Doctoral advisor | Bob Kamen |
| Other academic advisors | Tom Maniatis |
| Notable students | Richard Marais |
Sir Richard Henry Treisman (born 7 October 1954) is a British scientist who studies how cells work at a tiny level. He focuses on understanding the molecular biology of cancer. This means he looks at the very small parts of cells, like DNA and proteins, to figure out how cancer grows.
Sir Richard is a top research director at the Francis Crick Institute in London. This is a big research center where scientists work to understand diseases and improve human health.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Richard Treisman went to Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School when he was younger. Later, he studied at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he earned his first degree in 1977.
He continued his studies at the University College London. There, he earned his PhD in 1981. His research focused on how certain viruses, called polyomaviruses, make copies of their genetic material.
Career and Important Discoveries
After finishing his PhD, Treisman moved to Harvard University in the United States. He worked on understanding how genes control the making of globin, a protein found in red blood cells. He also studied genes related to a blood disorder called thalassemia.
In 1984, he joined the Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge. Here, he started researching how growth factors tell cells to grow and divide.
Understanding Cell Growth
One of his key discoveries was identifying a special protein called Serum response factor (SRF). This protein acts like a switch, turning genes on or off. It helps control how cells respond to growth signals.
He also found that other proteins, called TCF and MRTF, work with SRF. These helper proteins are important for how cells react to signals that tell them to grow. For example, MRTF proteins can sense changes inside the cell and help control cell movement.
Leadership in Research
From 2000 to 2015, Sir Richard was the Director of the Cancer Research UK (CRUK) London Research Institute. This institute is dedicated to finding new ways to fight cancer.
In 2009, he became a Research Director at the Francis Crick Institute. He continues to lead important research projects there, helping us learn more about how our bodies work and how diseases like cancer develop.
Awards and Recognition
Sir Richard Treisman has received many important awards for his scientific work:
- He became a member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) in 1988.
- He won the EMBO Gold Medal in 1995. This award recognizes outstanding young scientists in Europe.
- In 2002, he received the Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine. This is a major award for medical research.
- He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1994. Being a Fellow of the Royal Society is a very high honor for scientists in the UK.
- In 2016, he was knighted, which means he received the title "Sir" for his contributions to science.
