Tom Blundell
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Sir '''Tom Leon Blundell''', [[Fellow of the Royal Society|FRS]] (born [[1942-07-07]]) is a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[biologist]] and science administrator.
His [[Master of Arts (Oxbridge)|MA]] and [[DPhil]] are from the [[University of Oxford]], working with [[Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin|Dorothy Hodgkin]]. His early posts were at the University of Oxford and the [[University of Sussex]]. In [[1976]], Blundell joined the Department of Crystallography at [[Birkbeck, University of London]], becoming head of department in [[1978]].
In [[1991]], he moved into science administration, as Director General of the [[Agricultural and Food Research Council]] (1991–94) and then the founding Chief Executive of the [[Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council]] (BBSRC) ([[1994]]–[[1996]]). Other administrative posts include Chairman of the [[Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution]] ([[1998]]–[[2005]]). He is the current President of the [[Biosciences Federation]] ([[2004]] –date).
In [[1995]] he became the fifth [[Sir William Dunn Professor of Biochemistry]] and head of the Department of Biochemistry at the [[University of Cambridge]]; he currently also holds the Chair of the School of Biological Sciences at that university. He is a fellow of [[Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge|Sidney Sussex College]].
He is the co-founder of two drug discovery companies, [[Astex|Astex Technology]] Ltd and [[Biofabrika]].
He was made a fellow of the [[Royal Society]] in [[1984]] and knighted in [[1997]], and has also received numerous awards and medals.
==Research interests==
Blundell's research interests lie in elucidating macromolecular structure using methods from [[biochemistry]], [[crystallography|protein crystallography]], [[bioinformatics]], and [[drug design|structure-based drug design]]. Systems studied include [[DNA repair]], [[hormones]] and [[growth factors]], [[Signal transduction|cellular signalling]], [[crystallin]]s (lens proteins), [[renin]] and [[HIV]] protease. His group has also written several bioinformatics programs.
==Source==
*[http://www-cryst.bioc.cam.ac.uk/~tom/ Dept of Biochemistry, Cambridge] -- includes CV and publications list
==External links==
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/desertislanddiscs_20070603.shtml Desert Island Discs: Tom Blundell]
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{{succession box|title=[[Sir William Dunn Professor of Biochemistry]], [[Cambridge University]]|years=[[1995]] - |before=[[Hans Kornberg]]|after=incumbent}}
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[[Category:British biologists]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Royal Society]]
[[Category:Fellows of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge]]
[[Category:Academics of Birkbeck, University of London]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:1942 births]]
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