It is now 75 years since Marjory Stephenson became the second President of the Society for General Microbiology (SGM). Around the time of her death at the end of 1948 many articles appeared extolling Marjory Stephenson's contribution to the fields of Biochemistry and Microbiology. Not that much has been written about her since that time, which is unfortunate. Therefore, this brief review is intended as a form of redress and aims to highlight the role of this remarkable scientist in establishing the Society and in promoting Microbiology as a discipline. Notwithstanding the significance of these achievements, however, it is her overall impact on the field of 'Chemical Microbiology' and what she achieved through her research that are extraordinary, even by today's standards. Marjory Stephenson recognized that in order to understand a biological system, the 'whole' organism must be considered and this can only be achieved by adopting an interdisciplinary approach: inorganic and organic chemistry, biochemistry, genetics, metabolism and ultimately physiology. Her scientific ethos serves today as a beacon for how scientific research should be conducted, and what we as scientists can learn about how to inspire and mentor the next generation. It is impossible to overstate Marjory Stephenson's scientific legacy, or her overall contribution to Microbiology.
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A paean to the ineffable Marjory Stephenson.
Microbiology (Reading)
March 2022
Institute for Biology/ Microbiology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany.
It is now 75 years since Marjory Stephenson became the second President of the Society for General Microbiology (SGM). Around the time of her death at the end of 1948 many articles appeared extolling Marjory Stephenson's contribution to the fields of Biochemistry and Microbiology. Not that much has been written about her since that time, which is unfortunate.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe evolution of red color vision is linked to coordinated rhodopsin tuning in lycaenid butterflies.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
February 2021
Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138;
Color vision has evolved multiple times in both vertebrates and invertebrates and is largely determined by the number and variation in spectral sensitivities of distinct opsin subclasses. However, because of the difficulty of expressing long-wavelength (LW) invertebrate opsins in vitro, our understanding of the molecular basis of functional shifts in opsin spectral sensitivities has been biased toward research primarily in vertebrates. This has restricted our ability to address whether invertebrate G protein-coupled opsins function in a novel or convergent way compared to vertebrate G opsins.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTranscription activation in bacteria: ancient and modern.
Microbiology (Reading)
April 2019
School of Biosciences & Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK.
Regulatory interactions at the lac promoter.Activation of the transcription of genes is central to many processes of adaptation and differentiation in bacteria. Here, I review the molecular mechanisms by which transcription factors can activate the initiation of specific transcripts at bacterial promoters.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhat's the host and what's the microbe? The Marjory Stephenson Prize Lecture 2015.
J Gen Virol
September 2015
Division of Infection & Immunity, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK.
The interchange between retroviruses and their hosts is an intimate one because retroviruses integrate proviral DNA into host chromosomal DNA as an obligate step in the replication cycle. This has resulted in the occasional transduction of host genes into retroviral genomes as oncogenes, and also led to the integration of viral genomes into the host germ line that gives rise to endogenous retroviruses. I shall reflect on the evolutionary consequences of these events for virus and host.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiochemistry of methanogenesis: a tribute to Marjory Stephenson. 1998 Marjory Stephenson Prize Lecture.
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(Delivered at the 140th Ordinary Meeting of the Society for General Microbiology, 31 March 1998).
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