Michael Smith (chemist)
Encyclopedia
Michael Smith, CC
, OBC
, FRS (26 April 1932 – 4 October 2000) was a British-born Canadian
biochemist
who won the 1993 Nobel Prize
for Chemistry
.
, England
, and educated at the Arnold School
in Blackpool. He went on to receive his PhD in 1956 from the University of Manchester
. Afterwards, he did post-doctoral work in Gobind Khorana's Laboratory at the University of British Columbia
, Vancouver, Canada. He remained at the University of British Columbia from 1956 until his retirement in 1997.
In 1981 he co-founded the biotechnology company ZymoGenetics. In 1987 he founded and acted as Director of the University of British Columbia
Biotechnology Laboratory.
Smith retired in 1997. He had married Helen (divorced 1983); they had two sons and two daughters.
In 1993 Smith received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his fundamental contributions to the establishment of oligonucleotide
-based site-directed mutagenesis
, first published in 1978, and its utility in both genetics
and protein
studies, as well as genetic engineering
. The prize was awarded jointly to Smith and Kary Mullis
, who had invented the Polymerase Chain Reaction
independently of Smith's work.
In 1994 Michael Smith was made a Companion of the Order of Canada
.
In 2001 the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research was founded and named after him.
In 2004 the UBC Biotechnology Laboratories were renamed the Michael Smith Laboratories in his honour.
Canada's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre is named in his honour.
Also in 2004 the new biological sciences research centre at The University of Manchester
was named the Michael Smith Building.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
, OBC
Order of British Columbia
The Order of British Columbia is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Instituted in 1989 by Lieutenant Governor David Lam, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier Bill Vander Zalm, the order is administered by the Governor-in-Council and is intended to honour...
, FRS (26 April 1932 – 4 October 2000) was a British-born Canadian
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...
biochemist
Biochemist
Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. Typical biochemists study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. The prefix of "bio" in "biochemist" can be understood as a fusion of "biological chemist."-Role:...
who won the 1993 Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
for Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
.
Biography
Michael Smith was born in BlackpoolBlackpool
Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...
, 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...
, and educated at the Arnold School
Arnold School
Arnold School is an independent school located in Blackpool, Lancashire, England on the Fylde coast. It is in the United Church Schools Trust group of schools and is a member of HMC.-History:Arnold School was founded by Frank Truswell Pennington on 4 May 1896...
in Blackpool. He went on to receive his PhD in 1956 from the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
. Afterwards, he did post-doctoral work in Gobind Khorana's Laboratory at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
, Vancouver, Canada. He remained at the University of British Columbia from 1956 until his retirement in 1997.
In 1981 he co-founded the biotechnology company ZymoGenetics. In 1987 he founded and acted as Director of the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
Biotechnology Laboratory.
Smith retired in 1997. He had married Helen (divorced 1983); they had two sons and two daughters.
Honours
In March 1986 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal SocietyIn 1993 Smith received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his fundamental contributions to the establishment of oligonucleotide
Oligonucleotide
An oligonucleotide is a short nucleic acid polymer, typically with fifty or fewer bases. Although they can be formed by bond cleavage of longer segments, they are now more commonly synthesized, in a sequence-specific manner, from individual nucleoside phosphoramidites...
-based site-directed mutagenesis
Site-directed mutagenesis
Site-directed mutagenesis, also called site-specific mutagenesis or oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis, is a molecular biology technique in which a mutation is created at a defined site in a DNA molecule. In general, this form of mutagenesis requires that the wild type gene sequence be known...
, first published in 1978, and its utility in both genetics
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
and protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
studies, as well as genetic engineering
Genetic engineering
Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification, is the direct human manipulation of an organism's genome using modern DNA technology. It involves the introduction of foreign DNA or synthetic genes into the organism of interest...
. The prize was awarded jointly to Smith and Kary Mullis
Kary Mullis
Kary Banks Mullis is a Nobel Prize winning American biochemist, author, and lecturer. In recognition of his improvement of the polymerase chain reaction technique, he shared the 1993 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Michael Smith and earned the Japan Prize in the same year. The process was first...
, who had invented the Polymerase Chain Reaction
Polymerase chain reaction
The polymerase chain reaction is a scientific technique in molecular biology to amplify a single or a few copies of a piece of DNA across several orders of magnitude, generating thousands to millions of copies of a particular DNA sequence....
independently of Smith's work.
In 1994 Michael Smith was made a Companion of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
In 2001 the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research was founded and named after him.
In 2004 the UBC Biotechnology Laboratories were renamed the Michael Smith Laboratories in his honour.
Canada's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre is named in his honour.
Also in 2004 the new biological sciences research centre at The University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
was named the Michael Smith Building.
Selected publications
- Ferrer, J.C., Turano, P., Banci, L., Bertini, I., Morris, I.K., Smith, K.M., Smith, M., Mauk, A.G. (1994). Active site coordination chemistry of the cytochrome c peroxidase Asp235Ala variant: Spectroscopic and functional characterization. Biochem. 33: (25) 7819-7829.
- Guillemette, J.G., Barker, P.D., Eltis, L.D., Lo, T.P., Smith, M., Brayer, G.D., Mauk, A.G. (1994). Analysis of the biomolecular reducation of ferricytochrome c by ferrocytochrome b5 through mutagenesis and molecular modelling. Biochimie 76: 592-604.
- Berghuis, A.M., Guillemette, J.G., Smith, M., and Brayer, G.D. (1994). Mutation of tyrosine-67 to phenylamaine in cytochrome c significantly alters the local heme environment. J. Mol. Biol. 235: 1326-1341.
- Rafferty, S.P., Guillemette, J.G., Smith, M., and Mauk, A.G. (1996). Azide binding and active site dynamics of position-82 variants of ferricytochrome c. Inorg. Chem. Acta.242: 171-177.
- Woods, A.C., Guillemette, J.G., Parraish, J.C., Smith, M., Wallace, C.J.A. (1996). Synergy in Protein Engineering. Mutagenic manipulation of protein structure to simplify semisynthesis. J. Biol. Chem. 271: (50) 32008-32015.
- Hildebrand, D.P., Ferrer, J.C., Tang, H.-L., Smith, M., and Mauk, A.G. (1996). Trans effects on cysteine ligation in the proximal His93Cys variant of horse heart myoglobin. Biocchemistry 34: 11598-11605.
- Hildebrand, D.P., Ferrer, J.C., Tang, H.-L., Luo, Y., Hunter, C.L., Brayer, G.D., Smith, M. and Mauk, A.G. (1996). Efficient coupled oxidation of heme by an active site variant of horse heart myoglobin. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 118: (51) 12909-12915.
- Maurus, R., Overall, C.M., Bogumil, R., Luo, Y., Mauk, A.G., Smith, M., and Brayer, G.D. (1997). Thermal stabilization of horse heart myoglobin through modification of ahydrophobic cluster in the proximal heme pocket. Biochem. Acta. 1341: 1-13.
External links
- Michael Smith Labs Biography of Michael Smith
- Nobel Autobiography
See also
- Eric Damer and Caroline Astell. "No Ordinary Mike: Michael Smith, Nobel Laureate." Vancouver: Ronsdale Press, 2004.