Herchel Smith

Dr Herchel Smith is one of Cambridge’s greatest scientists and benefactors. He matriculated in 1942 at Emmanuel College and read Natural Sciences, followed by a PhD in Chemistry. He then had a highly successful career in the pharmaceutical industry, where his research fundamentally contributed to the development of the first synthetic birth control pills, injectable contraceptives and other groundbreaking hormone therapy treatments. He was awarded an honorary degree by the University in 1989. Throughout his life and on his death on 20th December 2001, Dr Smith donated substantial benefactions to the University of Cambridge, reflecting his great interests. These included the Herchel Smith Laboratory of Medicinal Chemistry Fund and the Herchel Smith Professorship of Medicinal Chemistry. The impact of Dr Smith’s legacy in Cambridge has been immense and will continue into the future. The generous endowments he provided for his Professorships attract leaders in their field to Cambridge, who inspire and motivate new generations of talented researchers and students. Please visit the Herchel Smith Fund website for more information about other support provided by Dr Smith's bequest.
 

The Herchel Smith Laboratory

Providing state-of-the-art facilities for interdisciplinary research, the Herchel Smith Laboratories create an environment for cutting-edge research. Here, through the use of chemical biology, the group aims to address questions of key importance in biology and medicine. Under the leadership of Professor Shankar Balasubramanian, the team employs a diverse array of techniques to study the chemistry and function of nucleic acids. There are a wide range of projects underway within the group, which address both fundamental science and its application to medical innovation. To further understanding of the biological control of the genetic code, two main areas are under investigation. Firstly, the identification, mapping and functional role of recently identified epigenetic markers. Secondly, the role of non-canonical nucleic acid structures in gene expression. Projects are also underway to identify novel drug targets based on nucleic acids, transcription and translation. These include investigation of transcription factors, DNA quadruplexes and non-coding RNA to provide potential new therapies for disease areas such as HIV and cancer. Please visit the group Research page for more information.
 

CRUK's Cambridge Research Institute

Opened in 2007, the Cambridge Research Institute (CRI) is a joint venture funded by the University of Cambridge and Cancer Research UK (CRUK). With over 20 internationally recognised research groups housed in world-class laboratory facilities, the CRI’s mission is the practical application of high-quality basic research to wide-ranging problems in cancer. The CRI is the nucleus of the Cambridge Cancer Centre, which promotes collaborative interactions across researchers from the University of Cambridge, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, surrounding biotechnology ventures and independent research centres such as the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. Professor Balasubramanian holds a senior group leader position at the CRI, and his laboratory based there provides the focus for the group’s experimental work in genomics, and cell and molecular biology.
 

Additional funding bodies supporting our work