Peter N. Campbell (1921–2005)

Abstract

Professor Peter Campbell passed away the night of February 7 after some months in the hospital following a car accident. Peter was one of the founders of Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) and his death is a great loss to his family and the scientific community at large. Peter was born in Kent, England in 1921. He started to study Chemistry at University College London in 1939, and received the PhD degree in Biochemistry in 1949 under Professor Sir Frank Young. From 1949 to 1954 Peter worked at the National Institute for Medical Research at Mill Hill in London under T.S. Work and thereafter moved to the Courtauld Institute of Biochemistry at the Middlesex Hospital Medical School in London. In 1961 he received a Doctor of Science degree from the University of London. In 1967 Peter was appointed to the Chair of Biochemistry at the University of Leeds and in 1976 he became Director of the Courtauld Institute of Biochemistry and Courtauld professor of Biochemistry at the University of London. He was also appointed Emeritus Professor of Biochemistry at the University of London. Peter published numerous scientific articles and was widely recognised for his work on protein synthesis. Moreover, he published several books, including Biochemistry Illustrated, a much acclaimed student text in biochemistry. The fifth edition of this book, which is co-authored together with Anthony Smith and Timothy Peters, is due in May this year. Peter was founding editor of Biochemical Education and Essays in Biochemistry, and edited for many years Biotechnology and Applied Biochemistry for the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB). Besides his love for research and teaching, Peter dedicated a great deal of his time to serve the scientific community at large. He was instrumental in establishing FEBS together with P.S. Datta and W.J. Whelan and acted as Secretary of the Biochemical Society from 1958 to 1964. He was the British delegate at the first Council meeting of FEBS in London in 1964 and was later elected Chairman of the Summer Schools Committee – afterwards renamed Advanced Courses Committee. One of Peter's outstanding ideas was to start in 1989 the Scientific Apparatus Recycling Scheme (SARS), a programme that since then has supplied numerous pieces of equipment and literature to Central and Eastern Europe and Africa. Peter was a strong believer in the capacity and potential of scientists in these countries and did his utmost to support them both in educational and scientific matters. Peter was very fond of the people and the countries he travelled to and was passionate about his work with SARS. In Horst Feldmann's book Forty Years of FEBS – A Memoir, Peter tells himself in chapter 6, page 146 about the SARS programme and how it developed under his guidance. In 1999 FEBS started the Working Group on Central and Eastern European Countries, and Peter was a dedicated member of this working group providing much expertise and enthusiasm as well as numerous contacts. In many ways Peter was a true FEBS ambassador. Peter's involvement in science went beyond Europe. He was a founder of the African Societies for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and served as chairman of the IUBMB Committee on Symposia. Later he founded the Education Committee of IUBMB. In 1981 Peter was awarded the FEBS Diplôme d'Honneur for his invaluable contributions to FEBS and the scientific community. This honour is conferred only to those who have given so much of their time to the benefit of others. Peter received the IUBMB Distinguished Service Award in 2000 in recognition of his services to the Union. We shall miss Peter terribly, and extend our condolences to his wife Molly, his children Alistair and Julia as well as to his many friends around the world.