Bertil Hille
Encyclopedia
Bertil Hille is a professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the University of Washington
. He is particularly well known for his research and expertise on cell signalling by ion channel
s.
. He attended the Foote School
and received his B.S. summa cum laude in Zoology from Yale University
(1962) and his Ph.D. in Life Sciences from The Rockefeller University (1967).
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
. He is particularly well known for his research and expertise on cell signalling by ion channel
Ion channel
Ion channels are pore-forming proteins that help establish and control the small voltage gradient across the plasma membrane of cells by allowing the flow of ions down their electrochemical gradient. They are present in the membranes that surround all biological cells...
s.
Early life and education
Hille was born in New Haven, ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. He attended the Foote School
Foote School
The Foote School is a private K-9 co-ed day school founded in 1916, located in the East Rock neighborhood of New Haven, Connecticut, United States near Yale University.- History :...
and received his B.S. summa cum laude in Zoology from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
(1962) and his Ph.D. in Life Sciences from The Rockefeller University (1967).
Personal life
He is married to Merrill Burr Hille, a professor of Zoology at the University of Washington, and has two sons, Erik and Trygve.Scientific contributions
In addition to his significant research contributions, he is the author of several editions of Ion Channels of Excitable Membranes, described as the reference textbook on ion channels. This text is known for its clarity and precise language, for its attention to the history of neural membrane research, and for the breadth and depth of its scientific coverage.Awards and distinctions
- 1986 - Elected to the National Academy of SciencesUnited States National Academy of SciencesThe National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
- 1996 - Louisa Gross Horwitz PrizeLouisa Gross Horwitz PrizeLouisa Gross Horwitz Prize for Biology or Biochemistry is an annual prize awarded by Columbia University to a researcher or group of researchers that have made an outstanding contribution in basic research in the fields of biology or biochemistry....
at Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
(with Clay ArmstrongClay ArmstrongClay Margarave Armstrong is an American physiologist and a former student of Dr. Andrew Fielding Huxley. He is currently a professor of Physiology at the University of Pennsylvania....
) - 1998 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and SciencesAmerican Academy of Arts and SciencesThe American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
- 1999 - Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research (with Rod MacKinnonRoderick MacKinnonRoderick MacKinnon is a professor of Molecular Neurobiology and Biophysics at Rockefeller University who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with Peter Agre in 2003 for his work on the structure and operation of ion channels....
and Clay Armstrong) - 2001 - Gairdner Foundation International AwardGairdner Foundation International AwardThe Gairdner Foundation International Award is given annually at a special dinner to three to six people for outstanding discoveries or contributions to medical science. Receipt of the Gairdner is traditionally considered a precursor to winning the Nobel Prize in Medicine; as of 2007, 69 Nobel...
(with Armstrong and MacKinnon) - 2002 - Elected to the Institute Of MedicineInstitute of MedicineThe Institute of Medicine is a not-for-profit, non-governmental American organization founded in 1970, under the congressional charter of the National Academy of Sciences...