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OF THE LISTER INSTITUTE

The Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine was established in 1891 as the British Institute of Preventive Medicine. In 1898 the name was changed to the Jenner Institute of Preventive Medicine and later to the Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine, the last name being in honour of the illustrious surgeon and pioneer of medical research, Joseph Lister, who had been one of the founders of the British Institute, chairman of the Governing Body from 1898 to 1903 and then President until 1911.

When it was set up the Institute had two aims:

* to undertake fundamental scientific research into the causes, prevention and treatment of disease in man and animals; and

* to prepare and supply special protective and curative materials such as vaccines and antitoxins.

As a result, it was an academic research institute needing funds to pursue its research and, at the same time, a production laboratory which was expected to augment the income needed for the research by profits on its sales. It was open for students from any country to come and study its methods.

The first 60 years

From the outset, the investigations undertaken at the new Institute were stamped by a diversity that was to continue throughout its life. During the period preceding the 1914-1918 war, they included the physiology of diving, the lethal effect of ultraviolet light on bacteria, the metabolism of fats and the role of vitamins in nutrition (the term ‘vitamine’ was coined at the Institute). The discovery by Arthur Harden and his colleagues of co-enzymes won him a share of a Nobel Prize, and the Director, Charles Martin, made outstanding contributions to the study of plague and its transmission. In 1905, the Lister Institute became a School of the University of London.

Rather than impeding the Institute’s work, the First World War directed it into new channels. Under the energetic leadership of Martin, the production of tetanus antiserum at Elstree was stepped up; the bacteria causing gas gangrene of infected wounds were identified; and when the fighting ended, Lister workers played a major part in defining the role of vitamins in the nutritional deficiency diseases that were widespread in Europe and elsewhere.

The 1939-45 war again made heavy demands on the Lister, both in terms of the production of antisera and vaccines and the provision of expertise in the field of nutrition; and it was not until the post-war period and the appointment in 1952 of Ashley Miles as Director that the Institute settled into the pattern that was maintained for the next quarter-century. During this period the Institute made more important contributions to biomedical science, which fall under the main headings of Biochemistry, Blood and Blood Products, Microbiology and Vaccines and Antitoxins

Notable achievements include:

Biochemistry
* Role of enzymes in the metabolism of plant and animal carbohydrates elucidated.
* First synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
* Structure of co-enzyme A defined.
* Discovery that immunological specificity of bacteria is conferred by certain oligosaccharides on their surfaces.
* Chemical nature of the human A, B, H and Lewis blood group antigens, their biosynthesis and genetic control.

Blood and blood products
* Invention of ether method for fractionating plasma to obtain fibrinogen, thrombin, albumin, immunoglobulins etc for clinical use.
* Large-scale production of dried human plasma.
* First clinically effective Factor VIII concentrate for treating haemophilia.
* First anti-D immunoglobulin for treating rhesus-negative mothers.
* Development of the radio-immunoassay used nationally to screen blood for hepatitis B.
* Blood group genetics and reference centres (Medical Research Council Units).

Microbiology and Immunology
* Life cycles of trypanosomes established.
* Method for identifying blood meals of insect vectors devised
* Sequential mutations in surface antigens found to hinder development of protective immunity.
* First description of ‘L forms’ of bacteria lacking cell walls.
* First isolations in West Africa and the UK of chlamydias affecting the eye and genital tract.
* Discovery of the ‘Vi’ antigen of Salmonella typhi.
* Motility of flagellated strains of salmonellas used to study phage transduction and its inheritance.
* First description of the bacterial sex pilus and its exploitation for studying bacterial plasmids, including those conferring resistance to antibiotics.

Vaccines and antitoxins
* Major participation in MRC field trials of pertussis vaccines.
* Development of the freeze-dried heat-stable vaccine used in the world smallpox eradication programme.

In addition to its research activities, the Institute was an important manufacturer of vaccines and antitoxins for use in the UK and other countries. It produced many millions of doses of ‘triple vaccine’–diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis–every year, as well as cholera, typhoid and rabies vaccines, and supplied nearly all the smallpox vaccine used in, and exported from, the UK. The Elstree laboratories also produced antisera against diphtheria, tetanus, gas gangrene, rabies and scorpion venom.

The Fellowship Scheme

In the early 1970s it became clear that the Institute was not holding its own financially. Repeated annual deficits, coupled with the need for major expenditure to modernise the Elstree production facilities and failure to secure government support dictated closure of the Chelsea laboratories in 1975 and Elstree in 1978. During this period, much thought was given to the best way in which the Institute could continue to play a significant part in biomedical research. In the event, the sale of its assets, the most important being the Chelsea site, raised enough money to endow annually a number of Senior Research Fellowships.

From the inception of the scheme in 1982 until 2002, ninety-five Fellows were appointed. Over its 20 years of operation the annual expenditure on grants averaged well over £1 million; in terms of ‘credits’ attributed to it in peer-reviewed journals, the Lister Institute ranked among the top twelve non-profit organisations funding biomedical research in the UK. Of the former Fellows, more than 60% now hold Chairs; and many have gained other prestigious awards and distinctions, including two knighthoods, three FRS’s and six FRSE’s.

Most of the projects reflected the rapid developments occurring in the biological sciences and were concerned with aspects of molecular biology or with studies at the cellular level. Soon after it began, the scheme enjoyed an outstanding success when one of the first five Fellows to be appointed, Alec Jeffreys, devised the method of ‘DNA fingerprinting’ widely used in forensic work to identify individuals. This invention was patented by the Institute and exploited commercially in association with ICI. In 1990, the Lister Institute was honoured by being awarded, jointly with ICI, the Queen’s Award for Technological Achievement.

The Next Step: The Research Prize Scheme

The Lister Institute relies almost entirely on its investment income to fund its charitable activities. Consequently it was badly affected by the major downturn in the stock market over the three-year period 2000-2002, the worst for in excess of 50 years. The situation was made worse by the fact that this downturn coincided with the decline in royalties from the DNA fingerprinting, low interest rates and changes in taxation that further reduced the Institute’s income. The academic environment had also changed: in 1982 there were relatively few fellowships available, by 2002 there were many more, some awarded by much better resourced charities and foundations than the Lister. The government, while acknowledging the funding problems in universities, had also recognised the success of fellowship schemes and was keen to support more. As a result of these various factors, in 2002 the Governors reluctantly concluded that the fellowship scheme was no longer sustainable at a viable level. It was therefore time for the Lister to move on and do something different to ensure that its limited funds could and did ‘make a difference’.

The new Research Prize award scheme supports the same types of research as the fellowships and again is responsive in that it funds research proposed by the applicants. The first three Prizes were awarded in 2004 and the scheme will be run, initially, for five years.  The primary basis for selection is still the quality and originality of the planned research and its potential implications for preventive medicine. The key difference is that, rather than paying their personal salaries, the Research Prize recipients are granted a fixed sum, currently £200,000, that they can spend almost as they choose in support of their research over a period of five years. Targeting young career scientists, it is believed that this academic research freedom will not only help to develop the careers of holders of these Lister Institute Research Prizes, but will also push forward the boundaries of understanding by providing seed funding for new research ideas and by boosting research efficiency and effectiveness. It is also believed that the Lister Community will be enhanced and the Institute’s reputation for innovative research funding will be maintained.

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