Jacques Miller AC wins Australia's top science prize

Carrying on a strong tradition of world class immunology research in Australia, the A$300,000 Prime Minister's Prize for Science has been awarded to Emeritus Professor Jacques Miller AC of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne.

Prof. Miller is the Australian researcher who discovered the function of the thymus gland, a small organ at the base of the neck. He found that humans have two types of white blood cells that fight invading bacteria and viruses - T cells that mature in the thymus - and B cells produced in the bone marrow.

Professor Suzanne Cory, Director of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, said it was rare that someone was able to say they had discovered the function of a major organ.

"Jacques Miller is probably the last scientist to be able to claim this distinction," she said. "His work has spearheaded a revolution in our understanding of how immunity is generated."

Australia has two Nobel Laureate's in immunology; Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet in 1960 and Professor Peter Doherty in 1996.

Item provided courtesy of Invest Australia