Venki Ramakrishnan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Venki Ramakrishnan
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Ramakrishnan in 2015
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| 62nd President of the Royal Society | |
| In office 1 December 2015 – 30 November 2020 |
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| Preceded by | Paul Nurse |
| Succeeded by | Adrian Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
1952 (age 72–73) Chidambaram, Madras State (now Tamil Nadu), India |
| Citizenship |
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| Spouse |
Vera Rosenberry
(m. 1975) |
| Children | 1 |
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| Relatives | Lalita Ramakrishnan (sister) |
| Residence | United Kingdom |
| Education |
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| Known for | |
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| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | |
| Thesis | The Green Function Theory of the Ferroelectric Phase Transition in Potassium Dihydrogen-Phosphate (1976) |
| Doctoral advisor | Tomoyasu Tanaka |
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (born in 1952) is a famous British-American structural biologist. He is known for his important work on ribosomes. Ribosomes are like tiny factories inside our cells that build proteins.
In 2009, he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He shared this award with Thomas A. Steitz and Ada Yonath. They were honored for their discoveries about the structure and function of ribosomes.
Since 1999, Ramakrishnan has been a group leader at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) in Cambridge, UK. He also served as the President of the Royal Society from 2015 to 2020. The Royal Society is a very old and respected scientific organization.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan was born in 1952 in Chidambaram, India. Both of his parents were scientists. His father, Prof. C. V. Ramakrishnan, led the biochemistry department at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. His mother, Prof. Rajalakshmi Ramakrishnan, earned a PhD in psychology.
Ramakrishnan has a younger sister, Lalita Ramakrishnan. She is also a professor and works in immunology at the University of Cambridge.
Moving to Vadodara and Early Schooling
When he was three, Ramakrishnan moved to Vadodara, India. He went to school there, except for a year and a half in Adelaide, Australia. He studied physics at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1971.
Studying in the United States
After college, he moved to the US. He earned his PhD in physics from Ohio University in 1976. His research was about a special property of materials called ferroelectricity. After his PhD, he spent two years at the University of California, San Diego. He was learning about biology, shifting from physics to the study of life.
Career and Scientific Discoveries
Ramakrishnan began studying ribosomes at Yale University. Ribosomes are tiny parts of cells that make proteins. Proteins are essential for almost all life processes.
Working at Research Labs
After his time at Yale, he worked at Brookhaven National Laboratory from 1983 to 1995. He continued his research on ribosomes there. In 1995, he became a professor of biochemistry at the University of Utah. Then, in 1999, he moved to the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England. This is where he works today.
Unlocking Ribosome Secrets
In 1999, Ramakrishnan's lab made a big breakthrough. They published a detailed image of a part of the ribosome called the 30S subunit. The next year, they showed the full structure of this 30S subunit. They also studied how antibiotics work by attaching to ribosomes.
His team also figured out how ribosomes make sure proteins are built correctly. In 2007, they showed the detailed structure of the whole ribosome. This included how it connects with other molecules needed for making proteins. More recently, he has used a method called Cryogenic electron microscopy to study how proteins are made in human cells.
Leading the Royal Society
Ramakrishnan was the President of the Royal Society from 2015 to 2020. This was a very important role in the scientific community.
Science and Global Issues
During his time as president, he spoke about how Brexit (the UK leaving the European Union) affected science. He believed that leaving the EU could make it harder for scientists to work together. He said that science needs international cooperation to solve big problems. These problems include climate change, diseases, and food security.
He argued that a good agreement on science was important for both the UK and Europe. He stressed that working together helps us tackle global challenges.
Awards and Honors
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan has received many important awards for his scientific work.
- In 2002, he became a member of the European Molecular Biology Organization.
- In 2003, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society.
- In 2004, he became a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.
- In 2007, he received the Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine.
- In 2009, he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. This is one of the highest honors in science.
- In 2010, India gave him the Padma Vibhushan. This is India's second-highest civilian award.
- In 2012, he was made a Knight Bachelor by the Queen of England. This means he is recognized for his services to science.
- In 2022, he was made a Member of the Order of Merit (OM). This is a very special honor given by the British monarch.
He has also received honorary degrees from several universities. These include the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda and the University of Cambridge.
Personal Life
In 1975, Ramakrishnan married Vera Rosenberry. She is an author and illustrator of children's books. He has a step-daughter and a son. His son, Raman Ramakrishnan, is a cellist and a professor.
Selected Books
- Gene Machine: The Race to Decipher the Secrets of the Ribosome (2018)
- Why We Die: And How We Live: The New Science of Ageing and Longevity (2024)
See also
In Spanish: Venkatraman Ramakrishnan para niños
