George Radda

Sir
George Radda
CBE FRS
Radda in 1996
Born(1936-06-09)9 June 1936
Győr, Hungary
Died13 September 2024(2024-09-13) (aged 88)
NationalityHungarian-British
CitizenshipBritish citizenship and Hungarian citizenship - Dual citizenship
EducationUniversity of Oxford
Known forMolecular imaging of heart metabolism and function
Awards
Scientific career
Institutions
Doctoral studentsStephen Busby
Alister McGrath
George H. Dodd
Websiteimaging.ox.ac.uk/network-members/gradda/

Sir George Charles Radda CBE FRS (Hungarian: Radda György Károly; 9 June 1936 – 13 September 2024) was a Hungarian-British chemist.

Biography

Radda was born in Hungary on 9 June 1936.[6] In 1957, he attended Merton College, Oxford, to study chemistry and worked on electrophilic aromatic substitution with Richard Norman and Jeremy Knowles,[7] having set aside an earlier interest in literary criticism.[2][8] His early work was concerned with the development and use of fluorescent probes for the study of structure and function of membranes and enzymes. He became interested in using spectroscopic methods including nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to study complex biological material.[8] In 1974, his research paper was the first to introduce the use of NMR to study tissue metabolites. In 1981, he and his colleagues published the first scientific report on the clinical application of his work. This resulted in the installation of a magnet large enough to accommodate the whole human body for NMR investigations in 1983 at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.[8][9]

In 1982 Radda published work concerning the relationship between deoxygenated haemoglobin and the NMR signal.[10]

From 1996 until his retirement in 2003, Radda was Chief Executive of the Medical Research Council in the UK.[11] In 2009 he was appointed chairman of the Biomedical Research Council in Singapore.[11]

Radda died on 13 September 2024, at the age of 88.[12][13]

Awards

Radda received numerous prestigious awards and honours for his pioneering efforts in using spectroscopic techniques for metabolic studies, including a Buchanan Medal in 1987.[3] He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1993 Birthday Honours for services to science, and knighted in the 2000 Birthday Honours for services to biomedical science.[14][15]

In addition, he was a Fellow of Merton College, Oxford,[16] a Fellow of the Royal Society[17] and was a British Heart Foundation Professor of Molecular Cardiology.[18] He has also been awarded many distinguished prizes throughout his scientific career. He was an Honorary Member of the American Heart Association[8] and was awarded the Citation for International Achievement.[8]

In 2015, he was conferred an award as an Honorary Citizen of Singapore.[19]

In 2018 he was awarded the Hungarian Corvin Chain. This is the second highest Hungarian state decoration and is awarded to persons who have made an outstanding contribution to the improvement of Hungarian public thought, science and culture.[20][21]

References

  1. ^ Radda, G. K. (1971). "Enzyme and membrane conformation in biochemical control". The Biochemical Journal. 122 (4): 385–96. doi:10.1042/bj1220385. PMC 1176792. PMID 4942951.
  2. ^ a b Lewin, Roger (10 June 1971). "Choosing The Right Problem". New Scientist and Science Journal. 50 (755): 642–643. ISSN 0262-4079.
  3. ^ a b "Buchanan Medal". The Royal Society. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  4. ^ a b "Sir George Radda". Oxford Biomedical Imaging Network. Archived from the original on 20 June 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  5. ^ "Professor Sir George Radda". Agency for Science, Technology and Research. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  6. ^ "Birthday's today". The Telegraph. 9 June 2011. Archived from the original on 10 June 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2014. Prof Sir George Radda, Chief Executive, Medical Research Council, 1996–2003, 75
  7. ^ Knowles, J.R.; Norman, R.O.C.; Radda, G. (1960). "A quantitative treatment of electrophilic aromatic substitution". J. Chem. Soc.: 4885–4896. doi:10.1039/jr9600004885.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Heartacademy – Newsletter" (PDF). heartacademy.org. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2010.
  9. ^ Radda, G (2011). "Straight talk with...George Radda. Interview by David Cyranoski". Nature Medicine. 17 (5): 525. doi:10.1038/nm0511-525. PMID 21546958.
  10. ^ Keith Thulborn; J C Waterton; Paul M. Matthews; George K. Radda (1 February 1982). "Oxygenation dependence of the transverse relaxation time of water protons in whole blood at high field". Biochimica et Biophysica Acta. 714 (2): 265–270. doi:10.1016/0304-4165(82)90333-6. ISSN 0006-3002. PMID 6275909. Wikidata Q28264358.
  11. ^ a b "Professor Sir George Radda obituary, Hungarian refugee and scientific pioneer". The Times. 19 September 2024. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
  12. ^ Elhunyt Radda György Károly professzor (in Hungarian)
  13. ^ "MRI Pioneer Professor Sir George Radda Passes Away". Hungary Today. 16 September 2024. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  14. ^ United Kingdom: "No. 53332". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 June 1993. p. 9.
  15. ^ United Kingdom: "No. 55879". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 19 June 2000. p. 1.
  16. ^ "Emeritus, Visiting and Honorary Fellows at Merton College, Oxford". Merton College, Oxford. Archived from the original on 18 June 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  17. ^ "Fellows of the Royal Society" (PDF). The Royal Society. 13 April 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  18. ^ "House of Lords – Animals in Scientific Procedures – Minutes of Evidence". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  19. ^ Khew, Carolyn (22 October 2015). "Two foreigners made Honorary Citizens of S'pore". The Straits Times. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  20. ^ Béni, Alexandra (12 February 2018). "Hungarian President decorates artists, academics with Corvin Chain Award for Merit". Daily News Hungary/. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
  21. ^ Ferry, Georgina (2 October 2024). "Sir George Radda obituary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 7 October 2024.

Interview with George Radda for the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine


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