John Marrack
Encyclopedia
Professor John Richardson Marrack, DSO
, MC
(26 November, 1886 – 1976) was the Emeritus Professor of Chemical Pathology in the University of London
, visiting professor to the University of Texas and known for his book Antigens and Antibodies (1934).
in Somerset
and educated at Blundell's School
in Tiverton, St John’s College
in Cambridge
and at the London Hospital Medical College.
Marrack served in the RAMC from 1914 to 1919 and was appointed Medical Officer on Poison Gas to the British Army.
Marrack was a John Lucas Walker Student and a Beir Memorial Fellow at Cambridge University and later a Fellow
of St John’s College. He received the Distinguished Service Award of the First International Congress of Immunology in 1971. His citation for this award reads: “For revolutionary ideas that have become commonplace in his lifetime, and for pioneering in the physico-chemical interpretation of antigen-antibody interactions.”
He was adviser to the Ministry of Food during the Second World War and was instrumental in developing Great Britain’s nutrition policy and accurately forecasting the country’s post-war nutritional needs.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
(26 November, 1886 – 1976) was the Emeritus Professor of Chemical Pathology in the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, visiting professor to the University of Texas and known for his book Antigens and Antibodies (1934).
Early life
Marrack was born in ClevedonClevedon
Clevedon is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, which covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset, England...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
and educated at Blundell's School
Blundell's School
Blundell's School is a co-educational day and boarding independent school located in the town of Tiverton in the county of Devon, England. The school was founded in 1604 by the will of Peter Blundell, one of the richest men in England at the time, and relocated to its present location on the...
in Tiverton, St John’s College
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
and at the London Hospital Medical College.
Marrack served in the RAMC from 1914 to 1919 and was appointed Medical Officer on Poison Gas to the British Army.
Marrack was a John Lucas Walker Student and a Beir Memorial Fellow at Cambridge University and later a Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
of St John’s College. He received the Distinguished Service Award of the First International Congress of Immunology in 1971. His citation for this award reads: “For revolutionary ideas that have become commonplace in his lifetime, and for pioneering in the physico-chemical interpretation of antigen-antibody interactions.”
He was adviser to the Ministry of Food during the Second World War and was instrumental in developing Great Britain’s nutrition policy and accurately forecasting the country’s post-war nutritional needs.
Research and publications
Marrack’s publications included:- Antigens and Antibodies (1934)
- Clinical Pathology (1945, with Dr P. W. Panton)
- Food and Planning (1942)
- Organised publication of the journal Immunology
- Editor, British Journal of Experimental Pathology
Sources
- Obituary of Professor J. R. Marrack, The Times, 27 July, 1976 (pg. 14; Issue 59766; col F)