Third King's E-Lab Annual Nobel Prize Lecture by Gregory Winter
Greg Winter studied Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge. He then completed his PhD at the LMB, working on the amino acid sequence of tryptophanyl tRNA synthetase from the bacterium Bacillus stearothermophilus. His research career has been based almost entirely at the LMB and the MRC Centre for Protein Engineering (CPE). He became a Programme Leader in 1981, was Joint Head of the PNAC Division from 1994-2006, Deputy Director of the LMB from 2006-2011 and acting Director 2007-2008. He was also Deputy Director of CPE from 1990 until its closure in 2010.
His main research focus is genetic and protein engineering. In his early research Greg was interested in the idea that all antibodies have the same basic structure, with only small changes making them specific for one target. He pioneered techniques in humanised and human therapeutic antibodies, which led to antibody therapies for cancer and diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. He has established hugely successful spin out companies including: Cambridge Antibody Technology (acquired by AstraZeneca), Domantis (acquired by GlaxoSmithKline) and Bicycle Therapeutics.
He is a Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge and was the Master of Trinity from 2012 to 2019. He was elected a member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation in 1987, a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1990 and Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2006, as well as being a Fellow or Honorary Fellow of many other professional organisations. He has been awarded numerous prizes and medals, including the 2018 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. He received a Knighthood for services to Molecular Biology in 2004.
More details from the Nobel Prize webpage.
Greg will be in conversation with Henrietta Mbeah-Bankas, Head of Portfolio at NHS England and an Executive MBA Student at Cambridge Judge Business School and Wolfson College, Cambridge. Henrietta has a background in mental health nursing and has worked in the NHS throughout with her current focus on health education reform; including the use of digital technologies in educating and training the health and social care workforce.
WHEN: Wednesday 6 March 2024
6.15 pm-7.45 pm Talk in LT1
WHERE: Judge Business School, Cambridge
Related Mindsets (E-Lab weekly blog series), by Fernando Gomollón Bel on The Humility of Humira’s Creator: a Conversation with Greg Winter and Raina Xing and Tim Liu on Unveiling the Journey from Scientist to Entrepreneur: An Inspiring Dinner with Nobel Laureate Sir Gregory Winter