The Croonian Medal and Lecture has been awarded to Professor Dame Kay Davies FMedSci FRS of Oxford’s Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics (DPAG) for her achievements in developing a prenatal test for Duchenne muscular dystrophy and for her work characterising the binding partners of the protein dystr-ophin.
Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a progressive muscle wasting disease which affects mostly boys, who often need wheelchairs at about 12 years of age and die in their twenties, usually from respiratory or cardiac problems. There is currently no effective treatment. Kay’s work has resulted in treatments poised to transform the lives of an estimate 250,000 patients worldwide.
Professor Tamsin Mather, Professor of Earth Science at the University of Oxford, was awarded the Rosalind Franklin Award for her work in the field of volcanology, and Professor Ian Walmsley FRS of Oxford’s Department of Physics was awarded the Rumford Medal for his pioneering work in the quantum control of light and matter on ultrashort timescales.