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New Year's Honours for UCL staff

6 January 2010

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OBE honour ucl.ac.uk/histmed/audio/neuroscience/moncada" target="_self">Professor Salvador Moncada: audio and video
  • Full New Year's Honours List
  • Three UCL staff and several members of the UCL community have been recognised in the 2010 New Year's Honours.

    Professor Salvador Moncada, Director of the Wolfson Institute of Biomedical Research at UCL, received a knighthood in the 2010 New Year's Honours.

    Professor Moncada, who was recognised for his services to science, is the highest cited scientist in the UK, having made major contributions in three areas of cardiovascular pharmacology.

    His 1987 Nature paper led to the understanding of various attributes of nitric oxide, and the substance is now both the target and effector of a score of compounds now in the clinic for the treatment of cardiovascular and rheumatic diseases.

    Professor Moncada showed, together with the late Sir John Vane, that low-dose aspirin blocked the synthesis of stable prostaglandins and thromboxanes from arachidonic acid - a finding that has had a major impact on cardiovascular mortality from stroke and myocardial infarction worldwide.

    Professor Moncada also elucidated the structure of prostacyclin, a compound formed by endothelial cells that relaxes blood vessels and prevents platelets from clumping; its derivatives ameliorate vasospasm and pulmonary hypertension.

    Professor Moncada is a Member of the National Academy of Sciences, a Fellow of the Royal Society and the Royal College of Physicians and an Honorary Fellow of UCL. He has played a key role within UCL's Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, both as Director of the Wolfson Institute and in developing research strategy as Vice-Dean (Research).

    Professor Sir John Tooke, UCL Vice-Provost (Health), said: "Professor Moncada has made truly groundbreaking discoveries in cardiovascular pharmacology of major translational significance over more than three decades. The School of Life and Medical Sciences at UCL is delighted his contributions have been recognised with his knighthood."

    Professor Carol Dezateux has been made Commander of the British Empire (CBE) for services to science.

    Professor Dezateux is Professor of Paediatric Epidemiology and Director of the Medical Research Council (MRC) Centre of Epidemiology for Child Health at the UCL Institute of Child Health (ICH). She is Head of the Centre for Paediatric Epidemiology and Biostatistics and of the Population Health Sciences theme at the ICH and an honorary consultant paediatrician at Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Trust (GOSH) where she co-directs the UK Newborn Screening Programme Centre.

    Professor Dezateux's research addresses early life influences on child health and the effectiveness of screening and other clinical and public health strategies to improve the health of children. She has recently led a UK-wide collaborative research study to evaluate newborn screening for MCADD - a rare metabolic disorder associated with sudden death in infancy - which led to it being introduced as a new screening programme in England.

    She contributes more widely to research strategy as chair of the MRC Training and Careers Group and member of the MRC Strategy Board, the National Information Governance Board, the Ethics and Confidentiality Committee and the British Paediatric Surveillance Unit Executive Committee.

    Responding to the news of her CBE, she said: "I am honoured and delighted to receive this award and the recognition it gives to our scientific research for children and their parents. This has been made possible by our MRC Centre as well as by the many colleagues who have inspired and supported me over the years."

    Professor Andrew Copp, Director at the ICH said, "In her various roles, Carol has made a remarkable contribution to her field and all of her colleagues will join me in congratulating her."

    Dr Jane Collins, Chief Executive at GOSH added:"This honour is richly deserved. No-one could work harder for the benefit of children across the UK and beyond."

    Professor Janet Darbyshire was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to clinical science.

    Professor Darbyshire is Director of the MRC Clinical Trials Unit hosted at UCL and Professor of Epidemiology at UCL.

    Commenting on the award, Professor Anne Johnson (UCL Division of Population Health) said: "Professor Darbyshire has undertaken world leading research in clinical trials for the treatment and prevention of HIV since the start of the epidemic and she has made an outstanding contribution to developing clinical research more widely. Her many UCL colleagues warmly congratulate her on this richly deserved award."

    Several other members of the UCL community were acknowledged in the 2010 honours.

    Alumni

    Christopher Bolt (MSc Economics 1978), Arbiter of London Underground Public Private Partnership Agreements, was made Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) for exemplary civil service.

    Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)

    • Maggi Hambling (Higher Diploma Fine Art, UCL Slade School 1969), painter and sculptor, for services to art.
    • Dr Christopher Harling (MBBS Clinical Medicine 1975), consultant occupational physician at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth and Director of NHS Plus, for services to occupational health.
    • Professor Peter Kennedy (MBBS Medical Sciences 1974, PhD Pathology 1980), Head of the Division of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Glasgow and consultant neurologist at the Institute of Neurological Sciences, Southern General Hospital, Glasgow, for services to clinical science.
    • Ian Luder (BSc Economics 1971), tax partner at Grant Thornton UK LLP and Lord Mayor of the City of London 2008-2009, for public service.
    • Dr David Price (BSc Electrical Engineering 1977, PhD 1982), Chief Executive of Chemring Group plc, for services to the defence industry.

    UCL Community

    Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)

    • Dr Alison Campbell (BSc Biochemistry 1985), Managing Director of King's College London Business Ltd, for services to knowledge transfer.
    • Dr Barbara Hendrie (MSc Anthropology 1990, PhD 1999), senior civil servant and former Deputy Director, Iraq, Department for International Development, for services to civil service.
    • Stephanie Hilborne (MSc Biology 1992), Chief Executive of The Wildlife Trusts, for services to nature conservation.
    • Silas Krendel (LLB 1939), self-employed solicitor/consultant and former Chairman of the Board and Trustee of the Foyle Foundation, for charitable services.
    • Eddie O'Gorman (UCL Honorary Fellow), Chairman and Founder of Children with Leukaemia, for charitable services to the Foundation for Children with Leukaemia.

    Richard Brantingham (MSc Remote Sensing 2002), Grade C1 at the Ministry of Defence, was made Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to defence.