Avrion Mitchison
Encyclopedia
The Honourable Avrion "Av" Mitchison FRS (born 5 May 1928) is a British
zoologist and immunologist.
(Baron Mitchison of Carradale in the County of Argyll, who died 1970) and his wife, the writer Naomi (née Haldane)
. His uncle was the biologist J.B.S. Haldane and his grandfather the physiologist John Scott Haldane. His elder brothers are the bacteriologist Denis Mitchison
and the zoologist Murdoch Mitchison
.
Professor the Honourable Avrion Mitchison FRS is married to Lorna Margaret Martin, daughter of Maj-Gen John Simson Stuart Martin, CSI. They have five children, Tim, Matthew, Mary, Hannah and Ellen. Two are cell biologists Tim Mitchison
and Hannah M. Mitchison.
He was educated at Leighton Park School
. He received his PhD
at New College, Oxford
with Nobelist Sir Peter Medawar
. This was followed by a long career as Professor of Zoology at University College London
, where his uncle J.B.S. Haldane taught, at the National Institute of Medical Research at Mill Hill and as Director of a Rheumatology Institute in Germany. He is currently a Professor Emeritus at University College London.
He was elected a Fellow
of the Royal Society
in 1967. He is also a foreign member of the National Academy of Sciences
, USA. Among many honors he holds an Honorary Doctorate from the Weizmann Institute and won the Sandoz Prize in Basic Immunology.
Mitchison's contributions to immunology include the discovery of both low dose and high dose tolerance for a single antigen, a surprising result in the context of basic clonal selection theory, but which can be understood in the context of immune network theory
.
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...
zoologist and immunologist.
Biography
Mitchison was born in 1928, the son of the Labour politician Dick MitchisonDick Mitchison
Gilbert Richard Mitchison, Baron Mitchison CBE QC, otherwise known as Dick Mitchison , was a British Labour politician....
(Baron Mitchison of Carradale in the County of Argyll, who died 1970) and his wife, the writer Naomi (née Haldane)
Naomi Mitchison
Naomi May Margaret Mitchison, CBE was a Scottish novelist and poet. She was appointed CBE in 1981; she was also entitled to call herself Lady Mitchison, CBE since 5 October 1964 .- Childhood and family background :Naomi Margaret Haldane was...
. His uncle was the biologist J.B.S. Haldane and his grandfather the physiologist John Scott Haldane. His elder brothers are the bacteriologist Denis Mitchison
Denis Mitchison
Denis Anthony "Denny" Mitchison CMG is a British bacteriologist.- Biography :Mitchison was born in 1919, the son of the Labour politician Dick Mitchison and his wife, the writer Naomi . His uncle was the biologist J.B.S. Haldane and his grandfather the physiologist John Scott Haldane...
and the zoologist Murdoch Mitchison
Murdoch Mitchison
John Murdoch Mitchison FRS, FRSE was a British zoologist, the son of the Labour politician Dick Mitchison and his wife, the writer Naomi . The biologist J.B.S. Haldane was his uncle, and the physiologist John Scott Haldane was his maternal grandfather...
.
Professor the Honourable Avrion Mitchison FRS is married to Lorna Margaret Martin, daughter of Maj-Gen John Simson Stuart Martin, CSI. They have five children, Tim, Matthew, Mary, Hannah and Ellen. Two are cell biologists Tim Mitchison
Tim Mitchison
Professor Timothy John "Tim" Mitchison, PhD, FRS is a British systems biologist. He is Hasib Sabbagh Professor of Systems Biology at Harvard University in the United States.- Biography :...
and Hannah M. Mitchison.
He was educated at Leighton Park School
Leighton Park School
Leighton Park School is a co-educational Quaker independent school for both day and boarding pupils. It is situated in the large town of Reading in Berkshire, in South East England...
. He received his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
at New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
with Nobelist Sir Peter Medawar
Peter Medawar
Sir Peter Brian Medawar OM CBE FRS was a British biologist, whose work on graft rejection and the discovery of acquired immune tolerance was fundamental to the practice of tissue and organ transplants...
. This was followed by a long career as Professor of Zoology at University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
, where his uncle J.B.S. Haldane taught, at the National Institute of Medical Research at Mill Hill and as Director of a Rheumatology Institute in Germany. He is currently a Professor Emeritus at University College London.
He was elected 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 1967. He is also a foreign member of the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The 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...
, USA. Among many honors he holds an Honorary Doctorate from the Weizmann Institute and won the Sandoz Prize in Basic Immunology.
Mitchison's contributions to immunology include the discovery of both low dose and high dose tolerance for a single antigen, a surprising result in the context of basic clonal selection theory, but which can be understood in the context of immune network theory
Immune network theory
The immune network theory is a theory of how the adaptive immune system works, that has been developed since 1974 mainly by Niels Jerne and Geoffrey W. Hoffmann. The theory states that the immune system is an interacting network of lymphocytes and molecules that have variable regions...
.