Professor Geoffrey Burnstock interviewed by Robyn Williams
TitleProfessor Geoffrey Burnstock interviewed by Robyn Williams
Reference240000024
Date2008
Scope and ContentGeoffrey Burnstock was born in London, England, in 1929. He finished his secondary education at Greenford County Grammar School in 1946 and then spent 1947 doing National Service with the Air Force. Burnstock then enrolled in science courses at the Kingston Technical Institute and worked weekends in the graveyard. In 1950, he was accepted into King’s College, University of London. Here he completed a BSc degree (1953), majoring in mathematics and physics. He then went on to complete a PhD (1957) at King’s College and University College London, University of London. Burnstock’s PhD research was in the field of zoology, where he examined gut motility in fish. In 1956, he was invited to join the Physiology Department at the National Institute for Medical Research in Mill Hill, London (1956-57). Whilst there, he developed the ‘sucrose gap technique’ for recording from smooth muscle. This led to a position in the Department of Pharmacology at Oxford University (1957-59). After spending a year at the University of Illinois on a Rockefeller Travelling Fellowship (1959), Burnstock took the leap to Australia.
Burnstock took up a senior lecturer position at the University of Melbourne in the Department of Zoology (1959). He was then promoted to reader (1962) and finally Professor and Chairman of Department (1964-75). During his time in Melbourne, Burnstock made radical discoveries about the role of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) in neurotransmission. He returned to England and University College London in 1975 to take up a post as head of the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology. He held this position until he stepped down as Head of Department in 1997, whereupon he was made Emeritus Professor. In the same period, Burnstock served as President of the International Society for Autonomic Neuroscience (1995-2000) and Director (1997-2004) and then President (2004-today) of the Autonomic Neuroscience Institute (now Centre) at the Royal Free and University College Medical School. Professor Burnstock continues his research in the field of purinergic signalling, with links to both basic and applied research. He has supervised more than 100 PhD and MD students.
Burnstock has received many awards and honours throughout his career for his contributions to autonomic neurobiology, physiology and gastroenterology including a Silver Medal from the Royal Society of Victoria (1970), and a Gold Medal from the Royal Society (2000). His research has led to the publication of more than 1200 original papers, which have been cited over 80,000 times.
Burnstock took up a senior lecturer position at the University of Melbourne in the Department of Zoology (1959). He was then promoted to reader (1962) and finally Professor and Chairman of Department (1964-75). During his time in Melbourne, Burnstock made radical discoveries about the role of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) in neurotransmission. He returned to England and University College London in 1975 to take up a post as head of the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology. He held this position until he stepped down as Head of Department in 1997, whereupon he was made Emeritus Professor. In the same period, Burnstock served as President of the International Society for Autonomic Neuroscience (1995-2000) and Director (1997-2004) and then President (2004-today) of the Autonomic Neuroscience Institute (now Centre) at the Royal Free and University College Medical School. Professor Burnstock continues his research in the field of purinergic signalling, with links to both basic and applied research. He has supervised more than 100 PhD and MD students.
Burnstock has received many awards and honours throughout his career for his contributions to autonomic neurobiology, physiology and gastroenterology including a Silver Medal from the Royal Society of Victoria (1970), and a Gold Medal from the Royal Society (2000). His research has led to the publication of more than 1200 original papers, which have been cited over 80,000 times.
LanguageEnglish
External document
Persons keyword Geoffrey Burnstock, Robyn Williams
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