John Gurdon (1933-2025)

John Gurdon was a towering figure in developmental biology, respected and admired throughout the world. His discovery, made when he was a PhD student, that the nuclei of differentiated cells retain their pluripotency was fundamental to stem cell research and regenerative medicine, and his career-long loyalty to Xenopus laevis as an experimental organism was a constant inspiration to the field. Although Xenopus has sometimes been written off as a model organism in favour of other species, it is probably true that we have learned more about early vertebrate development from its use than from that of any other species. John received many awards for his research, including the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, and both the Copley Medal and the Royal Medal of the Royal Society. He was also a significant contributor to UK science infrastructure and to academic life more broadly. Not only did he co-found the institute that now bears his name, but he also served as a Governor of the Wellcome Trust, and of Eton College, as Master of Magdalene College, University of Cambridge, as President of the British Society for Cell Biology and as Chair of The Company of Biologists, the publisher of this journal. Few biologists in the UK have achieved so much or been so influential.