Linda B. Buck

Last updated
Linda Buck
Dr Linda Buck ForMemRS.jpg
Buck in 2015
Born
Linda Brown Buck

(1947-01-29) January 29, 1947 (age 77) [1]
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Alma mater
Known for Olfactory receptors
Spouse Roger Brent
Awards
Scientific career
Fields Rhinologist
Institutions Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
University of Washington, Seattle
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Columbia University
Harvard University [4]
Thesis The Expression of IgD and Lyb-2 by Murine B Lymphocytes  (1980)
Doctoral advisor Ellen Vitetta
Website www.hhmi.org/scientists/linda-b-buck

Linda Brown Buck (born January 29, 1947) is an American biologist best known for her work on the olfactory system. [1] She was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, along with Richard Axel, for their work on olfactory receptors. [5] [6] [7] [8] She is currently on the faculty of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. [9]

Contents

Personal life

Linda B. Buck was born in Seattle, Washington on January 29, 1947. Her father was an electrical engineer who spent his time inventing and building different items in his spare time, while her mother was a homemaker who spent a majority of her free time solving word puzzles. [10] Buck was the second of three children, all of them girls. [11] Her father has Irish ancestry as well as ancestors dating back to the American revolution. Her mother is of Swedish ancestry. [12] In 1994 Buck met Roger Brent, also a biologist. The two married in 2006. [13]

Education

Buck received her B.S. in psychology and microbiology in 1975 from the University of Washington, Seattle. She is the first female University of Washington alumnus to win the Nobel Prize. [14] She was awarded her Ph.D. in immunology in 1980 under the direction of Professor Ellen Vitetta at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. [15]

Career and research

In 1980, Buck began postdoctoral research at Columbia University under Benvenuto Pernis (1980–1982). In 1982, she joined the laboratory of Richard Axel, also at Columbia in the Institute of Cancer Research. After reading Sol Snyder's group research paper at Johns Hopkins University, Buck set out to map the olfactory process at the molecular level, tracing the travel of odors through the cells of the nose to the brain. Buck and Axel worked with rat genes in their research and identified a family of genes that code for more than 1000 odor receptors and published these findings in 1991. [6] [16] Later that year, Buck became an assistant professor in the Neurobiology Department at Harvard Medical School where she established her own lab. [17] After finding how odors are detected by the nose, Buck published her findings in 1993 on how the inputs from different odor receptors are organized in the nose. [16] Essentially, her primary research interest is on how pheromones and odors are detected in the nose and interpreted in the brain. She is a Full Member of the Basic Sciences Division at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and an Affiliate Professor of Physiology and Biophysics at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2004)

In her landmark paper published in 1991 with Richard Axel, Linda Buck discovered hundreds of genes code for the odorant sensors located in the olfactory neurons of our noses. [15] Each receptor is a protein that changes when an odor attaches to the receptor, causing an electrical signal to be sent to the brain. [11] Differences between odorant sensors mean that certain odors cause a signal to be released from a certain receptor. [11] We are then able to interpret varying signals from our receptors as specific scents. [11] To do this, Buck and Axel cloned olfactory receptors, showing that they belong to the family of G protein-coupled receptors. By analyzing rat DNA, they estimated that there were approximately 1,000 different genes for olfactory receptors in the mammalian genome. [18] [19] This research opened the door to the genetic and molecular analysis of the mechanisms of olfaction. In their later work, Buck and Axel have shown that each olfactory receptor neuron remarkably only expresses one kind of olfactory receptor protein and that the input from all neurons expressing the same receptor is collected by a single dedicated glomerulus of the olfactory bulb.

Awards and honors

Buck was awarded the Takasago Award for Research in Olfaction (1992), Unilever Science Award (1996), R.H. Wright Award in Olfactory Research (1996), Lewis S. Rosenstiel Award for Distinguished Work in Basic Medical Research (1996), Perl/UNC Neuroscience Prize (2002), and Gairdner Foundation International Award (2003). [20] In 2005, she received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. [21] Buck was inducted into the National Academy of Sciences in 2003 and the Institutes of Medicine in 2006. [20] Buck has been a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences since 2008. [22] She also sits on the Selection Committee for Life Science and Medicine which chooses winners of the Shaw Prize. In 2015, Buck was awarded an honorary doctorate by Harvard University and elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS). [3]

Retractions

Buck retracted 3 papers, published in Nature (pub. 2001, retracted 2008), Science (pub 2006, retracted 2010) and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (pub 2005, retracted 2010) due to falsification/fabrication of results by lead author and collaborator Zhihua Zou. [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olfactory nerve</span> Cranial nerve I, for smelling

The olfactory nerve, also known as the first cranial nerve, cranial nerve I, or simply CN I, is a cranial nerve that contains sensory nerve fibers relating to the sense of smell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glomerulus (olfaction)</span>

The glomerulus is a spherical structure located in the olfactory bulb of the brain where synapses form between the terminals of the olfactory nerve and the dendrites of mitral, periglomerular and tufted cells. Each glomerulus is surrounded by a heterogeneous population of juxtaglomerular neurons and glial cells.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olfactory receptor</span> Chemoreceptors expressed in cell membranes of olfactory receptor neurons

Olfactory receptors (ORs), also known as odorant receptors, are chemoreceptors expressed in the cell membranes of olfactory receptor neurons and are responsible for the detection of odorants which give rise to the sense of smell. Activated olfactory receptors trigger nerve impulses which transmit information about odor to the brain. In vertebrates, these receptors are members of the class A rhodopsin-like family of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). The olfactory receptors form a multigene family consisting of around 400 genes in humans and 1400 genes in mice. In insects, olfactory receptors are members of an unrelated group of ligand-gated ion channels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Greengard</span> American neuroscientist (1925–2019)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Axel</span> American molecular biologist

Richard Axel is an American molecular biologist and university professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Columbia University and investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. His work on the olfactory system won him and Linda Buck, a former postdoctoral research scientist in his group, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Docking theory of olfaction</span>

The docking theory of olfaction proposes that the smell of an odorant molecule is due to a range of weak non-covalent interactions between the odorant [a ligand] and one or more G protein-coupled odorant receptors. These include intermolecular forces, such as dipole-dipole and Van der Waals interactions, as well as hydrogen bonding. More specific proposed interactions include metal-ion, ion-ion, cation-pi and pi-stacking. Interactions can be influenced by the hydrophobic effect. Conformational changes can also have a significant impact on interactions with receptors, as ligands have been shown to interact with ligands without being in their conformation of lowest energy.

The vibration theory of smell proposes that a molecule's smell character is due to its vibrational frequency in the infrared range. This controversial theory is an alternative to the more widely accepted docking theory of olfaction, which proposes that a molecule's smell character is due to a range of weak non-covalent interactions between its protein odorant receptor, such as electrostatic and Van der Waals interactions as well as H-bonding, dipole attraction, pi-stacking, metal ion, Cation–pi interaction, and hydrophobic effects, in addition to the molecule's conformation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR1D2</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 1D2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR1D2 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR1A1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 1A1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR1A1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR2W1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 2W1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR2W1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR51L1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 51L1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR51L1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR5P3</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 5P3 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR5P3 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR51E1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 51E1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR51E1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR13H1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 13H1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR13H1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR2M7</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 2M7 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR2M7 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OR2J3</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Olfactory receptor 2J3 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the OR2J3 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sense of smell</span> Sense that detects smells

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References

  1. 1 2 "Buck, Linda B." . Who's Who . Vol. 2016 (online Oxford University Press  ed.). Oxford: A & C Black.(Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ↑ "Linda B. Buck – A Superstar of Science". Superstars of Science. Archived from the original on 2014-08-10. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  3. 1 2 "Dr Linda Buck ForMemRS, Foreign Member". London: Royal Society. Archived from the original on 2015-11-17. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  4. ↑ "Facts & Figures". Harvard Medical School. Harvard College. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  5. ↑ "Press Release: The 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine". Nobelprize.org. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
  6. 1 2 Buck, L.; Axel, R. (1991). "A novel multigene family may encode odorant receptors: a molecular basis for odor recognition". Cell. 65 (1): 175–87. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(91)90418-X . PMID   1840504.
  7. ↑ "Secrets of smell land Nobel Prize". BBC News. 4 October 2004. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
  8. ↑ "Linda B. Buck – Curriculum Vitae, Interview". 2013-01-12. Archived from the original on January 12, 2013. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  9. ↑ "Linda Buck Lab". Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  10. ↑ "Linda B. Buck, PhD". HHMI.org. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Linda B. Buck – Biographical". Nobelprize.org. The Nobel Foundation 2004. Retrieved April 4, 2016.
  12. ↑ "The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2004". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2023-10-22.
  13. ↑ Badge, Peter (2008-01-01). Nobel Faces. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN   9783527406784.
  14. ↑ "Linda Fagan, '00, takes helm of U.S. Coast Guard". UW Magazine — University of Washington Magazine. May 30, 2022. Retrieved 2022-10-19.
  15. 1 2 Badge, Peter (2008). Nobel Faces. John Wiley & Sons. p. 180. ISBN   9783527406784 . Retrieved December 2, 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Linda B. Buck, Ph.D. Biography – Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org.
  17. ↑ "Linda B. Buck – Autobiography". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  18. ↑ Stein, Gabe (8 September 2017). "Five facts about Linda Buck, olfactory pioneer". Massive Science. Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  19. ↑ Lyons, Daniel. "The Secrets of Scent". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  20. 1 2 Wayne, Tiffany K. (2010). "Linda B. Buck". American Women of Science Since 1900.
  21. ↑ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  22. ↑ "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter B" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
  23. ↑ Retraction Database search. RetractionDatabase.org. Retrieved 14 December 2021
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