Institute appoints Professor Linda Partridge FRS to the Board of Trustees

The Babraham Institute is delighted to welcome Professor Dame Linda Partridge DBE, FRS, FRSE, FMedSci as a new member of its Board of Trustees. As a world-renowned geneticist and scientific leader in ageing research, Professor Partridge brings both experience in organisational leadership and an expert understanding of the Institute’s research focus.

Professor Partridge is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Division of Biosciences at University College London and the founding director of the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing in Cologne, Germany.

Chair of the Institute’s Board of Trustees, Professor Peter Rigby FRS, FMedSci welcomed Professor Partridge to the Board: “I am enormously pleased that Professor Partridge has agreed to join the Board of Trustees. I know that she will help the Board to guide the Institute forward to continued success in every aspect of its mission.”

Her research, which focuses on understanding the mechanisms that determine the rate of ageing, is strongly aligned with the Institute’s focus on healthy ageing, with shared collaborative research projects being undertaken in the past with former Director Michael Wakelam. Professor Partridge’s work has focused in particular on the role of nutrient-sensing pathways, such as the insulin/insulin-like growth factor signalling pathway, and on dietary restriction. Her current focus is on pharmacological treatments that could ameliorate the human ageing process to produce a broad-spectrum improvement in health during ageing.

Professor Partridge has received many honours in recognition of her work. Amongst these, she was elected to the Royal Society in 1996 and received a DBE for Services to Science in 2009, alongside the award of the Royal Society’s Croonian Lecture and the Darwin–Wallace Medal of the Linnean Society of London in the same year.

She was Director of the Institute of Healthy Ageing at UCL between 2007 and 2019, was previously a member of the Board of Trustees of the Natural History Museum and is currently the Biological Secretary and vice-President of the Royal Society.

Speaking about joining the Institute’s Board, Professor Partridge said: “I am excited to join the Babraham Institute Board of Trustees and hope to help support their mission of research excellence to improve lifelong health. I look forward to contributing to shape the Institute’s future and seeing the exciting growth of its research as it breaks new scientific ground in understanding human biology.”

Dr Simon Cook, Institute Director, added his welcome, saying: “I am excited to welcome Linda, an international leader in ageing research, to the Board, where we can benefit from her experience to progress our research. We’re deeply appreciative of the contribution our Trustees make to ensure that the Institute continues to meet the high standards it sets for itself, both in our mission to undertake excellent research that improves lives and drives innovation, but also in how we operate to achieve that goal.

“I know that Linda’s support will enhance and strengthen the Institute and I look forward to working with her over the coming years.”

Notes

Contact

Dr Louisa Wood, Head of Communications, louisa.wood@babraham.ac.uk

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About the Babraham Institute

The Babraham Institute undertakes world-class life sciences research to generate new knowledge of biological mechanisms underpinning ageing, development and the maintenance of health. Our research focuses on cellular signalling, gene regulation and the impact of epigenetic regulation at different stages of life. By determining how the body reacts to dietary and environmental stimuli and manages microbial and viral interactions, we aim to improve wellbeing and support healthier ageing. The Institute is strategically funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation, through Institute Strategic Programme Grants and an Institute Core Capability Grant and also receives funding from other UK research councils, charitable foundations, the EU and medical charities.

About the Institute’s Board of Trustees

The Institute’s Board is responsible for overseeing the management of the Institute to ensure that the Institute runs optimally and meets the requirements associated with its funding from the BBSRC and its charitable status. The Board works closely with the Director and the Institute’s senior management to shape the Institute’s strategic vision, and set priorities and policies. 

About BBSRC

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is part of UK Research and Innovation, a non-departmental public body funded by a grant-in-aid from the UK government.

BBSRC invests in world-class bioscience research and training on behalf of the UK public. Our aim is to further scientific knowledge, to promote economic growth, wealth and job creation and to improve quality of life in the UK and beyond.

Funded by government, BBSRC invested £451 million in world-class bioscience in 2019-20. We support research and training in universities and strategically funded institutes. BBSRC research and the people we fund are helping society to meet major challenges, including food security, green energy and healthier, longer lives. Our investments underpin important UK economic sectors, such as farming, food, industrial biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.