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Professor Robin Allshire FMedSci FRS

Robin Allshire is a world leader in epigenetics and chromosome biology, the vital branches of biology that concern inheritance and reproduction. He has made crucial advancements to our understanding of chromosomes — the structures that contain the genetic material of animal and plant cells.

His elegant work on chromosomes in yeast has revealed crucial findings, including that parts of the DNA sequence are conserved between generations, and that as a person ages the ends of their chromosomes shorten. He has also demonstrated that a portion of DNA previously thought to be ‘junk’ is a vital part of the chromosome machinery.

He currently runs the Allshire Lab at the  at the University of Edinburgh, and is a principal research fellow of the . He was also elected a member of  in 1988 and a fellow of Âé¶¹´«Ã½Ó³»­ of Edinburgh in 2002.

Subject groups

  • Molecules of Life

    Biochemistry and molecular biology, Cell biology (incl molecular cell biology)

  • Cell Biology

    Genetics (excluding population genetics)

Professor Robin Allshire FMedSci FRS
Elected 2011
Committees Participated Role
Council November 2024 - November 2027 Member
Editorial Board of Open Biology January 2015 - December 2025 Member
Sectional Committee 6: Molecules of Life December 2012 - November 2015 Member
Editorial Board of Open Biology April 2012 - December 2025 Member
Newton International Fellowships Committee (Biol.) January 2012 - December 2014 Member
Sir Henry Dale Fellowship Panel November 2011 - May 2017 Chair