Peter Medawar

Peter Medawar (28 February 1915 – 2 October 1987) was a British biologist born in Brazil, whose work on graft rejection and the discovery of acquired immune tolerance was fundamental to the medical practice of tissue and organ transplants. For his works in immunology he was awarded the 1960 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, shared with Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet.

Early life and education

Peter Medawar was born on 28 February 1915, in Petrópolis, a town 40 miles north of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. His father was a Lebanese businessman and his mother was British. Medawar was educated at Marlborough College and Magdalen College, Oxford.

Career

Medawar was Mason Professor of Zoology at the University of Birmingham between 1947 and 1951. In 1951 he became Jodrell Professor of Zoology and Comparative Anatomy at University College London. In 1962 he was appointed Director of the National Institute for Medical Research.

Research

Medawar's most famous work was on the immune system and the reason why the body does not reject its own tissue but rejects the tissue of others. This work, carried out with Rupert Billingham and Leslie Brent, led to the discovery of the principle of immune tolerance. This principle is fundamental to the practice of tissue and organ transplants.

Awards and honours

Medawar was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1960, shared with Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, for the discovery of acquired immune tolerance. He was also awarded the Royal Medal in 1959 and the Copley Medal in 1969.

Death

Medawar died on 2 October 1987, aged 72, as a result of a stroke leading to cerebral hemorrhage.

External links

• Nobel biography
• Peter Medawar. Exploring the Mind of a Scientific Gadfly

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Peter Medawar

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  Peter Medawar

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  Plaque commemorating Peter Medawar