The rockefeller university

Event Details

Type

Lewis Thomas Prize

Speaker(s)

Frances Ashcroft, Ph.D., Royal Society Research Professor, department of physiology, anatomy and genetics, University of Oxford

Event URL

http://www.rockefeller.edu/lewisthomasprize/2013

Speaker bio(s)

Frances Ashcroft first experienced science as a school-age naturalist who loved to observe the plants and animals of her native South West England. Those childhood interests blossomed into a remarkable career as a research physiologist and best-selling author. Dr. Ashcroft, a Royal Society Research Professor at the University of Oxford, has made important discoveries about ion channels — membrane-bound pores that regulate electrical activity in cells. As a writer, she is acclaimed for the wit and clarity she brings to her descriptions of biology’s marvels.
 

In her book Life at the Extremes, Dr. Ashcroft explores the physiological responses to severe heat and cold, very high or low atmospheric pressure, and other environmental challenges, answering such questions as why penguins don’t get frostbite and how sperm whales — mammals like us — can sound the ocean depths without risking the bends. In 2012’s The Spark of Life, she uses her knowledge of ion channels as a springboard to explaining why chili peppers burn and how some drugs affect emotion and alter perception.
 

Dr. Ashcroft’s many scientific accomplishments include identification of a role for potassium ion channels in glucose metabolism. This work led to insights into the treatment of adult-onset diabetes and crucial findings about a genetic form of neonatal diabetes. Her research has made it possible to treat this rare disorder with oral medications rather than daily injections.
 

Frances Ashcroft earned her bachelor’s degree (1974) and Ph.D. (1979) in zoology from Cambridge University. She has been a Medical Research Council postdoctoral fellow at the University of Leicester and a Muscular Dystrophy Association fellow at the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Ashcroft joined the faculty of Oxford in 1992, and was elected the 8000^th Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1999. She is a 2007 recipient of the L’Oreal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science.

Open to

Public

Reception

Refreshments, 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m., Abby Lounge and Dining Room

Contact

Lindsey Cole

Phone

(212) 327-8183

Sponsor

Lindsey Cole
(212) 327-8183
lcole@rockefeller.edu