Walter Bodmer
Encyclopedia
Sir Walter Bodmer is a German
-born British
human geneticist
. His father being Jewish, the family left Germany in 1938 and settled in Manchester. Bodmer has developed models for population genetics
and done work on the human leukocyte antigen
system and the use of somatic cell
hybrids for human linkage
studies. In 1985 he chaired a Royal Society
committee which wrote The Bodmer Report; this has been credited with starting the movement for the public understanding of science
. http://royalsociety.org/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=5971.
Reading Mathematics at Cambridge University Walter Bodmer worked with Sir Ronald Fisher
, moving into statistics. After receiving his PhD at Cambridge University he continued as a fellow. In 1961 he joined Prof. Joshua Lederberg
's laboratory in the Genetics Department of Stanford University
, continuing his research on population genetics, using the computing facilities that Stanford could offer. In 1962 Walter Bodmer was appointed to the faculty at Stanford. He left Stanford University in 1970 to become the first Professor of Genetics at Oxford University http://www.hertford.ox.ac.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=490&Itemid=581.
Bodmer became a Fellow
of the Royal Society
in 1974 and was knighted in 1986. Walter Bodmer was one of the first to suggest the idea of the Human Genome Project. In 1987 he received the Ellison-Cliffe Medal from the Royal Society of Medicine
. He was the director of research (1979–1991) and then Director General (1991–1996) of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. He was also Chancellor
of the University of Salford
, England
(1995–2005; succeeded by Sir Martin Harris
) and Principal of Hertford College, Oxford
(1996–2005; succeeded by Dr. John Landers
).
He is currently Head of the Cancer
and Immunogenetics Laboratory
in the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Oxford
. Research
interests of the laboratory include the fundamental genetics
and biology
of colorectal cancer
.
In 2005, Sir Walter Bodmer was appointed to lead a £2.3 million project (roughly 4.5 million USD) by the Wellcome Trust
at Oxford University to examine the genetic makeup of the United Kingdom
- the People of the British Isles project. Professor Sir Walter Bodmer was joined by Oxford Professor Peter Donnelly
(a population genetics and statistics expert) and the Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow Professor Lon Cardon. Professor Bodmer said "Our aim is to characterise the genetic make-up of the British
population and relate this to the historical and archaeological evidence." The researchers presented some of their findings to the public via the Channel 4
television series "Faces of Britain." On 14 April 2007, Channel 4 in Britain aired a program that highlighted the study’s then-current findings. The project took DNA
samples from hundreds of volunteers throughout Britain, seeking tell-tale fragments of DNA that would reveal the biological traces of successive waves of colonisers — Celt
s, Saxons
, Vikings, etc. — in various parts of Britain. The findings showed that the Viking
invasion of Britain was predominately from Danish Vikings while the Orkney Islands
were settled by Norwegian Vikings.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-born British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
human geneticist
Human genome
The human genome is the genome of Homo sapiens, which is stored on 23 chromosome pairs plus the small mitochondrial DNA. 22 of the 23 chromosomes are autosomal chromosome pairs, while the remaining pair is sex-determining...
. His father being Jewish, the family left Germany in 1938 and settled in Manchester. Bodmer has developed models for population genetics
Population genetics
Population genetics is the study of allele frequency distribution and change under the influence of the four main evolutionary processes: natural selection, genetic drift, mutation and gene flow. It also takes into account the factors of recombination, population subdivision and population...
and done work on the human leukocyte antigen
Human leukocyte antigen
The human leukocyte antigen system is the name of the major histocompatibility complex in humans. The super locus contains a large number of genes related to immune system function in humans. This group of genes resides on chromosome 6, and encodes cell-surface antigen-presenting proteins and...
system and the use of somatic cell
Somatic cell
A somatic cell is any biological cell forming the body of an organism; that is, in a multicellular organism, any cell other than a gamete, germ cell, gametocyte or undifferentiated stem cell...
hybrids for human linkage
Linkage
Linkage generally means "the manner or style of being united", and can refer to:*Genetic linkage, the tendency of certain genes to be inherited together*Flux linkage, the total flux passing through a surface formed by a closed conducting loop...
studies. In 1985 he chaired a Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
committee which wrote The Bodmer Report; this has been credited with starting the movement for the public understanding of science
Public awareness of science
Public awareness of science , also public understanding of science , is a term relating to the attitudes, behaviours, opinions and activities that comprise the relations between the general public or lay society as a whole to scientific knowledge and organisation.It is a comparatively new approach...
. http://royalsociety.org/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=5971.
Reading Mathematics at Cambridge University Walter Bodmer worked with Sir Ronald Fisher
Ronald Fisher
Sir Ronald Aylmer Fisher FRS was an English statistician, evolutionary biologist, eugenicist and geneticist. Among other things, Fisher is well known for his contributions to statistics by creating Fisher's exact test and Fisher's equation...
, moving into statistics. After receiving his PhD at Cambridge University he continued as a fellow. In 1961 he joined Prof. Joshua Lederberg
Joshua Lederberg
Joshua Lederberg ForMemRS was an American molecular biologist known for his work in microbial genetics, artificial intelligence, and the United States space program. He was just 33 years old when he won the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering that bacteria can mate and...
's laboratory in the Genetics Department of Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, continuing his research on population genetics, using the computing facilities that Stanford could offer. In 1962 Walter Bodmer was appointed to the faculty at Stanford. He left Stanford University in 1970 to become the first Professor of Genetics at Oxford University http://www.hertford.ox.ac.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=490&Itemid=581.
Bodmer became 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 the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
in 1974 and was knighted in 1986. Walter Bodmer was one of the first to suggest the idea of the Human Genome Project. In 1987 he received the Ellison-Cliffe Medal from the Royal Society of Medicine
Royal Society of Medicine
The Royal Society of Medicine is a British charitable organisation whose main purpose is as a provider of medical education, running over 350 meetings and conferences each year.- History and overview :...
. He was the director of research (1979–1991) and then Director General (1991–1996) of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. He was also Chancellor
Chancellor (education)
A chancellor or vice-chancellor is the chief executive of a university. Other titles are sometimes used, such as president or rector....
of the University of Salford
University of Salford
The University of Salford is a campus university based in Salford, Greater Manchester, England with approximately 20,000 registered students. The main campus is about west of Manchester city centre, on the A6, opposite the former home of the physicist, James Prescott Joule and the Working Class...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
(1995–2005; succeeded by Sir Martin Harris
Martin Harris (academic)
Professor Sir Martin Best Harris CBE , MA PhD LLD is a British academic and Professor of Linguistics.He was born at Ruabon, Wales, the son of William Best Harris, afterwards City Librarian of Plymouth, and educated at Devonport High School for Boys in Plymouth, and at Queens' College, Cambridge...
) and Principal of Hertford College, Oxford
Hertford College, Oxford
Hertford College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is located in Catte Street, directly opposite the main entrance of the original Bodleian Library. As of 2006, the college had a financial endowment of £52m. There are 612 students , plus various visiting...
(1996–2005; succeeded by Dr. John Landers
John Landers
John Maxwell Landers was Principal of Hertford College, Oxford until September 2011.Landers was educated at Hertford College, Oxford and Churchill College, Cambridge...
).
He is currently Head of the Cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
and Immunogenetics Laboratory
Laboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
in the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
. Research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
interests of the laboratory include the fundamental genetics
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
and biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
of colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer, commonly known as bowel cancer, is a cancer caused by uncontrolled cell growth , in the colon, rectum, or vermiform appendix. Colorectal cancer is clinically distinct from anal cancer, which affects the anus....
.
In 2005, Sir Walter Bodmer was appointed to lead a £2.3 million project (roughly 4.5 million USD) by the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
at Oxford University to examine the genetic makeup of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
- the People of the British Isles project. Professor Sir Walter Bodmer was joined by Oxford Professor Peter Donnelly
Peter Donnelly
Peter Donnelly, FRS is an Australian mathematician and Professor of Statistical Science at the University of Oxford. He is a specialist in applied probability and has made contributions to coalescent theory...
(a population genetics and statistics expert) and the Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow Professor Lon Cardon. Professor Bodmer said "Our aim is to characterise the genetic make-up of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
population and relate this to the historical and archaeological evidence." The researchers presented some of their findings to the public via the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
television series "Faces of Britain." On 14 April 2007, Channel 4 in Britain aired a program that highlighted the study’s then-current findings. The project took DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
samples from hundreds of volunteers throughout Britain, seeking tell-tale fragments of DNA that would reveal the biological traces of successive waves of colonisers — Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
s, Saxons
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
, Vikings, etc. — in various parts of Britain. The findings showed that the Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
invasion of Britain was predominately from Danish Vikings while the Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
were settled by Norwegian Vikings.