Keith R. Porter
Encyclopedia
Keith Roberts Porter was a Canadian
cell biologist
. He did pioneering biology research using electron microscopy
of cells
, such as work on the 9 + 2 microtubule
structure in the axoneme
of cilia. Porter also contributed to the development of other experimental methods for cell culture
and nuclear transplantation
. He also was responsible for naming the endoplasmic reticulum
.
Keith Porter was born in Yarmouth
, Nova Scotia
on June 11, 1912, and became a citizen of the United States in 1947. He was an undergraduate at Acadia University
and a graduate student at Harvard University
. Starting in the late 1930s he did research at The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. Porter helped found the American Society for Cell Biology and the Journal of Cell Biology. The Keith R. Porter Endowment for Cell Biology, founded in 1981, supports an annual Keith Porter Lecture at the conference of American Society for Cell Biology.
Porter moved to Harvard University in 1961 and to the University of Colorado
at Boulder
in 1968. He retired in 1983 and did post-retirement work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the University of Pennsylvania
. UMBC's Keith R. Porter Core Imaging Facility is dedicated to Porter.
In 1970, together with Albert Claude
and George E. Palade, Porter was awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
from Columbia University
. Porter's colleagues Albert Claude
, Christian de Duve
and George E. Palade were awarded a Nobel Prize in 1974 "for describing the structure and function of organelles in biological cells", work that Porter is also well known for.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
cell biologist
Cell biology
Cell biology is a scientific discipline that studies cells – their physiological properties, their structure, the organelles they contain, interactions with their environment, their life cycle, division and death. This is done both on a microscopic and molecular level...
. He did pioneering biology research using electron microscopy
Electron microscope
An electron microscope is a type of microscope that uses a beam of electrons to illuminate the specimen and produce a magnified image. Electron microscopes have a greater resolving power than a light-powered optical microscope, because electrons have wavelengths about 100,000 times shorter than...
of cells
Cell (biology)
The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....
, such as work on the 9 + 2 microtubule
Microtubule
Microtubules are a component of the cytoskeleton. These rope-like polymers of tubulin can grow as long as 25 micrometers and are highly dynamic. The outer diameter of microtubule is about 25 nm. Microtubules are important for maintaining cell structure, providing platforms for intracellular...
structure in the axoneme
Axoneme
Numerous eukaryotic cells carry whip-like appendages whose inner core consists of a cytoskeletal structure called the axoneme....
of cilia. Porter also contributed to the development of other experimental methods for cell culture
Cell culture
Cell culture is the complex process by which cells are grown under controlled conditions. In practice, the term "cell culture" has come to refer to the culturing of cells derived from singlecellular eukaryotes, especially animal cells. However, there are also cultures of plants, fungi and microbes,...
and nuclear transplantation
Somatic cell nuclear transfer
In genetics and developmental biology, somatic-cell nuclear transfer is a laboratory technique for creating a clonal embryo, using an ovum with a donor nucleus . It can be used in embryonic stem cell research, or, potentially, in regenerative medicine where it is sometimes referred to as...
. He also was responsible for naming the endoplasmic reticulum
Endoplasmic reticulum
The endoplasmic reticulum is an organelle of cells in eukaryotic organisms that forms an interconnected network of tubules, vesicles, and cisternae...
.
Keith Porter was born in Yarmouth
Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
Yarmouth is a town and fishing port located on the Gulf of Maine in rural southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the shire town of Yarmouth County. The town is located in the heart of the world's largest lobster fishing grounds and has Canada's highest lobster catch.- History :The townsite may...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
on June 11, 1912, and became a citizen of the United States in 1947. He was an undergraduate at Acadia University
Acadia University
Acadia University is a predominantly undergraduate university located in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada with some graduate programs at the master's level and one at the doctoral level...
and a graduate student at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. Starting in the late 1930s he did research at The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. Porter helped found the American Society for Cell Biology and the Journal of Cell Biology. The Keith R. Porter Endowment for Cell Biology, founded in 1981, supports an annual Keith Porter Lecture at the conference of American Society for Cell Biology.
Porter moved to Harvard University in 1961 and to the University of Colorado
University of Colorado at Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado...
at Boulder
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
in 1968. He retired in 1983 and did post-retirement work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. UMBC's Keith R. Porter Core Imaging Facility is dedicated to Porter.
In 1970, together with Albert Claude
Albert Claude
Albert Claude was a Belgian biologist who shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1974 with Christian de Duve and George Emil Palade. He studied engineering, and then medicine...
and George E. Palade, Porter was awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for Biology or Biochemistry is an annual prize awarded by Columbia University to a researcher or group of researchers that have made an outstanding contribution in basic research in the fields of biology or biochemistry....
from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. Porter's colleagues Albert Claude
Albert Claude
Albert Claude was a Belgian biologist who shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1974 with Christian de Duve and George Emil Palade. He studied engineering, and then medicine...
, Christian de Duve
Christian de Duve
Christian René, viscount de Duve is a Nobel Prize-winning cytologist and biochemist. De Duve was born in Thames Ditton, Surrey, Great Britain, as a son of Belgian refugees. They returned to Belgium in 1920...
and George E. Palade were awarded a Nobel Prize in 1974 "for describing the structure and function of organelles in biological cells", work that Porter is also well known for.
Awards
- 1964 Gairdner Foundation International AwardGairdner Foundation International AwardThe Gairdner Foundation International Award is given annually at a special dinner to three to six people for outstanding discoveries or contributions to medical science. Receipt of the Gairdner is traditionally considered a precursor to winning the Nobel Prize in Medicine; as of 2007, 69 Nobel...
- 1970 Louisa Gross Horwitz PrizeLouisa Gross Horwitz PrizeLouisa Gross Horwitz Prize for Biology or Biochemistry is an annual prize awarded by Columbia University to a researcher or group of researchers that have made an outstanding contribution in basic research in the fields of biology or biochemistry....
- 1971 Dickson Prize in Science
- 1971 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter PrizePaul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter PrizeThe Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize is given every year since 1952 for investigations in medicine. The prize carries a prize money of 100.000 Euro. The prize awarding ceremony is traditionally on March 14, the birthday of Paul Ehrlich, in the St. Pauls-Church, Frankfurt.Awarded are...
- 1976 National Medal of ScienceNational Medal of ScienceThe National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social sciences, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and...
- 1981 E. B. Wilson MedalE. B. Wilson MedalThe American Society for Cell Biology's highest honor for science, the E.B. Wilson Medal is presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for significant and far-reaching contributions to cell biology over the course of a career. It is named after Edmund Beecher Wilson.- Medalists :The following...
External links
- The Official Site of Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
- Keith R. Porter Papers (1938–1993) at the University of Colorado at Boulder