Sarah Gilbert
Dame Sarah Catherine Gilbert DBE FRS (born April 1962) is an English vaccinologist who is a Professor of Vaccinology at the University of Oxford and co-founder of Vaccitech.[2][3][4][5][6] She specialises in the development of vaccines against influenza and emerging viral pathogens.[7] She led the development and testing of the universal flu vaccine, which underwent clinical trials in 2011.
For the American actress, see Sara Gilbert.
Sarah Gilbert
April 1962 (age 61–62)
University of East Anglia (BSc)
University of Hull (PhD)
3
Albert Medal (2021)
Princess of Asturias Award (2021)
King Faisal Prize (2023)
University of Oxford
Vaccitech
Delta Biotechnology
Leicester Biocentre
Brewing Industry Research Foundation
Christ Church, Oxford
Colin Ratledge, Dr M. Keenan
In January 2020, she read a report on ProMED-mail about four people in China suffering from a strange kind of pneumonia of unknown origin in Wuhan.[8] Within two weeks, a vaccine had been designed at Oxford against the new pathogen, which later became known as COVID-19.[9] On 30 December 2020, the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine she co-developed with the Oxford Vaccine Group was approved for use in the UK.[10] As of January 2022, more than 2.5 billion doses of the vaccine have been released to more than 170 countries worldwide.[11]
Early life and education[edit]
Sarah Catherine Gilbert was born in Kettering, Northamptonshire. Her father was an office manager for a shoemakers and her mother was a primary school teacher.[12] Gilbert attended Kettering High School for Girls, where she realised that she wanted to work in medicine.[13][14] She earned nine O-Levels with six A grades.[13] She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in biological sciences from the University of East Anglia (UEA) in 1983.[15] While at UEA she began playing the saxophone, which she would practise in the woods around the UEA Broad so as not to disturb others in her halls.[13][16]
She moved to the University of Hull for her doctoral degree, where she investigated the genetics and biochemistry of the yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides, graduating with a PhD in 1986.[17][14]
Recognition[edit]
Gilbert was the subject of BBC Radio 4's The Life Scientific in September 2020.[42] She was also on the list of the BBC's 100 Women announced on 23 November 2020,[43] and became a senior associated research fellow at Christ Church, Oxford.[44] Gilbert was awarded the Rosalind Franklin medal for her services to science by Humanists UK at its annual Rosalind Franklin Lecture on 5 March 2021,[45] at which she delivered a lecture titled ‘Racing against the virus’. The lecture detailed the history of the science of vaccination and recounted the progress of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.[46]
In June 2021, Gilbert received a standing ovation at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships.[47] In 2021, as a role model (Barbie Shero), Sarah Gilbert had a Barbie doll made in her honour by the toy manufacturer Mattel.[48][49]
Personal life[edit]
Gilbert gave birth to triplets in 1998. Her partner gave up his career to be their primary parent.[14] As of 2020, all of the triplets are studying biochemistry at university.[12]
; Plebanski M; Gupta S; et al. (1 February 1998). "Association of malaria parasite population structure, HLA, and immunological antagonism". Science. 279 (5354): 1173–1177. Bibcode:1998Sci...279.1173G. doi:10.1126/SCIENCE.279.5354.1173. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 9469800. Wikidata Q47826329.
Sarah Gilbert
Gilbert has an h-index of 95 according to Google Scholar.[1] Her publications include:[57][58]