Sir John B. Gurdon Kt DPhil DSc FRS
Sir John B. Gurdon Kt DPhil DSc FRS
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2012
Nobel co-recipient Shinya Yamanaka
Name: John Bertrand Gurdon
Birth: 2 October 1933, Dippenhall, United Kingdom
Institution: Gurdon Institute, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Award: ” that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent”
Subject: genetics
Portion of cash: 1/2
Developmental Biologist. Mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent. Hobbies: Outdoor sports, mountaineering, travelling, but not theatre, music, reading.
At age15, damning school report: …he will not listen, but will insist in doing his work his own way…has ideas of becoming a Scientist…waste of time for him and teachers.
`Know Thyself
Vita
Journal Articles
History of Discovery
Patents: Sir John Gurdon has not patented his work
Books
Images
Bearing Gurdon’s Name
External Resources/Videos
Nobel Medal Cash and Charity
Nobel Medal Cash and Philanthropy
By Robert Dean Kidd, Jr., J.D., B.A.
Attorney, Philosopher and Editor, Albuquerque, NM
Sir John Gurdon, a developmental biologist, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics and Medicine along with Shinya Yamanaka in 2012. Gurdon’s pioneering work has been primarily in nuclear transplantation and cloning. The 2012 Nobel award was based on his and Yamanaka’s work on the conversion of mature cells into stem cells. Gurdon was also the first person to clone an animal from a single cell.
Gurdon’s career has been dedicated to advancing scientific research even when there was no immediate practical value to the research. He has continually advocated for supporting scientific advancement that does not have any immediate application but is done purely for the sake of advancing scientific knowledge. Gurdon’s and Yamanaka’s discoveries could lead to new medical treatments.
At the present Gurdon has indicated that he plans to use part of his award money to fund Ph.D. students in their fourth year of study. The fourth year is when most graduate students’ funding is exhausted. It is efforts like these that support the Nobel’s spirit of advancing science and knowledge for the benefit of others without consideration for personal wealth or gain.