26 Mar 08

Professor Tom Cavalier-Smith

Two members of the University of Oxford's Zoology Department have received major awards from the Zoological Society of London.

Tom Cavalier-Smith, Professor of Evolutionary Biology, has been awarded the Society's Frink Medal for lifetime achievement in Zoological Research. Professor Cavalier-Smith has been largely responsible for understanding the stem of the tree of life. He has recognised more phyla, which are animal groupings based on the same body plan, than anyone else in history. Animals belonging to the same phylum may look different, such as spiders and crabs, but are classified together based on their internal organisation. Professor Cavalier-Smith has used a variety of morphological and molecular techniques to show how phyla are evolutionarily related to each other.

Sunetra Gupta, Professor of Theoretical Epidemiology, has been awarded the Society's Scientific Medal for major research achievements by a mid-career scientist. Professor Gupta has revealed the causes, existence, and epidemiological consequences of previously unexpected and unrecognised genetically diverse strain structure in populations of pathogens as diverse as malaria and influenza.