Sir Michael Rudolf Stratton, (born 22 June 1957) is a British
clinical scientist and the third director of the
Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
The Wellcome Sanger Institute, previously known as The Sanger Centre and Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, is a non-profit British genomics and genetics research institute, primarily funded by the Wellcome Trust.
It is located on the Wellcome G ...
. He currently heads the
Cancer Genome Project
The Cancer Genome Project is part of the cancer, aging, and somatic mutation research based at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in The United Kingdom. It aims to identify sequence variants/mutations critical in the development of human cancers. ...
and is a leader of the
International Cancer Genome Consortium
The International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) is a voluntary scientific organization that provides a forum for collaboration among the world's leading cancer and genomic researchers. The ICGC was launched in 2008 to coordinate large-scale can ...
.
[Michael Stratton's publications in Google Scholar](_blank)
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Patterns of mutation in human cancer genomes
' – video of a seminar given by Stratton at the Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
.
Every human 'could get their own genome sequence'
' – Interview with Stratton on BBC's the Today Programme
''Today'', colloquially known as ''the Today programme'', is a long-running British morning news and current-affairs Radio program, radio programme on BBC Radio 4. Broadcast on Monday to Saturday from 6:00 am to 9:00 am, it is produced by BBC N ...
Education
Stratton was educated at the independent Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
Haberdashers' Boys' School (also known as Haberdashers', Habs, or Habs Boys), until September 2021 known as Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, is a Independent school (United Kingdom), public school for pupils age 4 to 18 in Elstree, Hertfo ...
and obtained a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree from the University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
where he was a student of Brasenose College, Oxford. He completed his clinical training at Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...
before training as a histopathologist at the Hammersmith and Maudsley Hospitals in London. He obtained a PhD while working on Medulloblastoma
Medulloblastoma is a common type of primary brain cancer in children. It originates in the part of the brain that is towards the back and the bottom, on the floor of the skull, in the cerebellum, or posterior fossa.
The brain is divided into two ...
s in the molecular biology of cancer at the Institute of Cancer Research, awarded by the University of London
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
in 1990.[
]
Career and research
Stratton has held clinical posts at Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...
, Westminster Hospital
Westminster Hospital was a hospital in London, England, founded in 1719. In 1834 a medical school attached to the hospital was formally founded.
In 1939 a newly built hospital and medical school opened in Horseferry Road, Westminster. In 1994 the ...
, Hammersmith Hospital
Hammersmith Hospital, formerly the Military Orthopaedic Hospital, and later the Special Surgical Hospital, is a major teaching hospital in White City, West London. It is part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in the London Borough of ...
and the Royal Marsden Hospital
The Royal Marsden Hospital (RM) is a specialist cancer treatment hospital in London based in Kensington and Chelsea, next to the Royal Brompton Hospital, in Fulham Road with a second site in Belmont, close to Sutton Hospital, High Down and D ...
. He took up a Faculty appointment and now holds a Professorship at the Institute of Cancer Research. He joined the Sanger Institute in 2000 and was promoted to deputy director in 2007. In May 2010, he was appointed director, succeeding Allan Bradley.
Stratton's research interests are in the area of genetics of cancer. In 1994, he assembled a research group that localised BRCA2, a major breast cancer susceptibility gene that repairs chromosomal damage, to chromosome 13
Chromosome 13 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans. People normally have two copies of this chromosome. Chromosome 13 spans about 114 million base pairs (the building material of DNA) and represents between 3.5 and 4% of the total DNA ...
. The following year his team identified the gene and, in doing so generated a megabase segment of high-quality human genome sequence. His subsequent work has involved the identification of more moderate cancer susceptibility genes such as CHEK2
CHEK2 (Checkpoint kinase 2) is a tumor suppressor gene that encodes the protein CHK2, a serine-threonine kinase. CHK2 is involved in DNA repair, cell cycle arrest or apoptosis in response to DNA damage. Mutations to the CHEK2 gene have been linked ...
, ATM and PALB2
Partner and localizer of BRCA2, also known as PALB2 or FANCN, is a protein which in humans is encoded by the ''PALB2'' gene.
Function
This gene encodes a protein that functions in genome maintenance ( double strand break repair). This prote ...
each of which play a role in some breast cancers. He has additionally identified genes implicated in the development of skin, testis, colorectal and thyroid cancers, Wilms tumour
Wilms' tumor or Wilms tumor, also known as nephroblastoma, is a cancer of the kidneys that typically occurs in children, rarely in adults.; and occurs most commonly as a renal tumor in child patients. It is named after Max Wilms, the German su ...
and Peutz–Jeghers syndrome
Peutz–Jeghers syndrome (often abbreviated PJS) is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder characterized by the development of benign hamartomatous polyps in the gastrointestinal tract and hyperpigmented macules on the lips and oral mucosa ( mela ...
.[
At the announcement of the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2000, Stratton discussed using genome sequences to revolutionise cancer treatment.][ He and Andy Futreal had already initiated the ]Cancer Genome Project
The Cancer Genome Project is part of the cancer, aging, and somatic mutation research based at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in The United Kingdom. It aims to identify sequence variants/mutations critical in the development of human cancers. ...
at the Sanger Centre
The Wellcome Sanger Institute, previously known as The Sanger Centre and Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, is a non-profit British genomics and genetics research institute, primarily funded by the Wellcome Trust.
It is located on the Wellcome Ge ...
, as it was then known, to use genome-wide analysis to find somatic mutation
A somatic mutation is a change in the DNA sequence of a somatic cell of a multicellular organism with dedicated reproductive cells; that is, any mutation that occurs in a cell other than a gamete, germ cell, or gametocyte. Unlike germline mutatio ...
s in human cancers. According to fellow cancer researcher Chris Marshall, doing so prior to the completion of the human genome sequence was an "audacious idea." The aims of the project are to identify new cancer genes, to understand how cancers develop and to study how the structure of genomes influence cancer. In 2002 and 2004, Stratton's team discovered mutations in the BRAF and ERBB2
Receptor tyrosine-protein kinase erbB-2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''ERBB2'' gene. ERBB is abbreviated from erythroblastic oncogene B, a gene originally isolated from the avian genome. The human protein is also frequently refer ...
genes in approximately 60 per cent of malignant melanoma
Melanoma, also redundantly known as malignant melanoma, is a type of skin cancer that develops from the pigment-producing cells known as melanocytes. Melanomas typically occur in the skin, but may rarely occur in the mouth, intestines, or eye ...
s and 4 per cent of non-small-cell lung cancer
Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is any type of epithelial lung cancer other than small-cell lung carcinoma (SCLC). NSCLC accounts for about 85% of all lung cancers. As a class, NSCLCs are relatively insensitive to chemotherapy, compared to s ...
s respectively.
In 2009, Stratton and colleagues reported the first complete cancer genomes, from a lung tumour and a melanoma.[ They also analysed the genomes from 24 different breast tumours and found a diversity of DNA abnormalities, indicating that cancers can be divided in more subcategories than previously thought.] Stratton's team maintain the Catalogue of Somatic Mutations in Cancer (COSMIC) database, a set of online resources available to the scientific community
The scientific community is a diverse network of interacting scientists. It includes many " sub-communities" working on particular scientific fields, and within particular institutions; interdisciplinary and cross-institutional activities are als ...
. He is also one of the lead researchers in the International Cancer Genome Project, a £600 million, multi-national project to sequence 25 000 cancer genomes, from 50 different types of cancer.[ Stratton's research has been funded by the ]Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glaxo ...
and the Medical Research Council (MRC).
Controversy
In August 2018 it was reported that an investigation was under way into allegations of bullying of staff and gender discrimination made against senior management of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
The Wellcome Sanger Institute, previously known as The Sanger Centre and Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, is a non-profit British genomics and genetics research institute, primarily funded by the Wellcome Trust.
It is located on the Wellcome G ...
, including Stratton. The independent investigation, carried out by the barrister Thomas Kibling from Matrix Chambers
Matrix Chambers is a barristers' chambers in Gray's Inn London, Brussels, and Geneva. Founded in April 2000 by 22 barristers from 7 different chambers, it now has over 90 independent and specialist lawyers who work throughout the UK and interna ...
, concluded in October 2018 and cleared Stratton of any wrongdoing. The public report stated that the allegation of bullying was "misplaced, unwarranted and misconceived", while also listing areas for improvement in the workings of the Sanger Institute. Some of the claimants disputed these findings.
Awards and honours
Stratton was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci) is an award for medical scientists who are judged by the UK Academy of Medical Sciences for the "excellence of their science, their contribution to medicine and society and the range of th ...
(FMedSci) in 1999, elected a Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...
in 2008, elected to EMBO Membership
Membership of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is an award granted by the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) in recognition of "research excellence and the outstanding achievements made by a life scientist".
, 88 EMB ...
in 2009[ and was awarded the Lila Gruber Cancer Research Award in 2010. He was knighted in the ]2013 Birthday Honours
The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...
for services to medical science. His nomination for the Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
reads:
In May 2022, Stratton was awarded the inaugural 'In Search of Wonder Lifetime Achievement Award' at the Cambridge Independent's Science and Technology Awards, sponsored by Waterbeach creative design agency JDJ Creative. He received the award at a ceremony held at the Wellcome Genome Campus
The Wellcome Genome Campus is a scientific research campus built in the grounds of Hinxton Hall, Hinxton in Cambridgeshire, England.
Campus
The Campus is home to some institutes and organisations in genomics and computational biology. The C ...
, just three months after announcing his decision to step down as director of the Wellcome Sanger Institute
The Wellcome Sanger Institute, previously known as The Sanger Centre and Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, is a non-profit British genomics and genetics research institute, primarily funded by the Wellcome Trust.
It is located on the Wellcome ...
and CEO of the Wellcome Genome Campus
The Wellcome Genome Campus is a scientific research campus built in the grounds of Hinxton Hall, Hinxton in Cambridgeshire, England.
Campus
The Campus is home to some institutes and organisations in genomics and computational biology. The C ...
after 12 years in the post.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Stratton, Michael Rudolf
Living people
Academics of the Institute of Cancer Research
Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford
British geneticists
Fellows of the AACR Academy
Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences (United Kingdom)
Fellows of the Royal Society
Knights Bachelor
Members of the European Molecular Biology Organization
People educated at Haberdashers' Boys' School
1957 births
Wellcome Trust