Nicholas Peter Franks FRS FRSB (born 14 October 1949) has been Professor of Biophysics and Anaesthetics at Imperial College London since 1993. [1] His research focuses on how general anaesthetics act at the cell and molecular levels as well as with neuronal networks. [2] Franks holds patents on use of xenon gas as a neuroprotectant [3] and has published research on the use of the anesthetic properties of xenon. [4]
He was educated at Mill Hill School and King's College London (BSc 1972; PhD 1975). [5] He was a lecturer in biophysics at Imperial College London from 1977 to 1989 and a reader in biophysics from 1989 to 1993.
Along with being made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2011, [6] Franks was elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2004, [7] and a Fellow of the Royal College of Anaesthetists in 2008. [8] He was awarded the Gold Medal, Royal College of Anaesthetists in 2003, [9] the Excellence in Research Award, American Society of Anesthesiologists in 2006 [10] and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Montreal in 2011. [11]