4 The candidate
14. Professor Sir Tom Blundell began his academic
career with a DPhil from the University of Oxford in 1967. He
held posts at the University of Oxford and Sussex University,
before becoming Professor of Crystallography at Birkbeck College,
University of London in 1976.
15. In 1991, Professor Blundell became Director General
of the Agricultural and Food Research Council (AFRC). The AFRC
was incorporated with the biotechnology and biological sciences
programmes of the former Science and Engineering Research Council
in 1994, forming the BBSRC.[29]
Professor Blundell became the founding Chief Executive, a post
which he held until 1996. In 1995 he was appointed as the fifth
Sir William Dunn Professor of Biochemistry at the University of
Cambridge, and went on to become Head of Department of Biochemistry
(1996-2009) and Chair of School of Biological Sciences (2003-2009).
He is currently Director of Research in the Department of Biochemistry
at the University of Cambridge.
16. He leads a research group funded by the Wellcome
Trust, BBSRC, MRC and industry. His research interests lie in
investigating molecular structures and in the relation of molecular
structure to biological function and diseases such as cancer.
This research has led to drug design and he has co-founded two
biotechnology companies, for one of which (Astex) he is the Chairman
of the Science Advisory Board. He has also served on Science Advisory
Boards of companies including UCB Celltech and SmithKline Beecham.
17. He was Chairman of the Royal Commission on Environmental
Pollution from
1998-2005, and also recently held the post of President of the
Biosciences Federation (2004-2008).
18. Current roles also include President of the Biochemical
Society, Joint Editor of two scientific journals and positions
on the Science Advisory Boards of UCB Celltech and Abingworth
Management Ltd.
19. Professor Blundell's full CV is attached as Annex
C to Appendix 1.
29 http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/organisation/history.html
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