Alec Jeffreys

Biography

Sir Alec John Jeffreys is a professor in the field of Genetics. He is responsible for the discovery of DNA fingerprinting.

Sir Alec Jeffreys

Alec John Jeffreys was born on Jan. 09, 1950 in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England to Sidney V. Jeffreys and Joan (Knight) Jeffreys.^[1] In 1956, he moved with his family to Luton, Bedfordshire where he attended Luton Grammar School.^[2] His father, also an inventor, encouraged his interest in chemistry, as well as his paternal grandfather who had several patents.

He attended Luton Sixth Form College.^[2] He then went to Merton College in Oxford on a four-year scholarship. He graduated with first-class honours in biochemistry. He completed his doctorate at the University of Oxford.

On Aug. 28, 1971 he married Susan Miles in Luton, Bedfordshire, England.^[3] They have two daughters.

He began his career in research at the University of Amsterdam. He then went on to the University of Leicester where in 1984 he made his breakthrough which lead to the discovery of DNA fingerprinting.

His genetic fingerprinting revolutionized the way police investigate crime. It is the most important contribution to criminal investigation since the fingerprint.

He has received several awards and was knighted for his work in 1994. He retired in 2012.

Sources

1. ↑ "England and Wales Birth Registration Index, 1837-2008," database, FamilySearch birth record (1 October 2014), Alec J Jeffrey, 1950; from "England & Wales Births, 1837-2006," database, findmypast; citing Birth Registration, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, citing General Register Office, Southport, England.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Sidney V. and Joan Jeffreys and two children (private), 1970; Luton, Bedfordshire, England, Electoral Registers, 1832-1986 electoral register; Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2017.
3. ↑ "England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch marriage record (8 October 2014), Alec J Jeffreys and Susan Miles, 1971; from “England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005,” database, findmypast; citing 1971, quarter 3, vol. 4A, p. 660, Luton, Bedfordshire, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.

See also:

• Biography of Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys University of Leicester
• Image; citing: Gitschier J (2009) The Eureka Moment: An Interview with Sir Alec Jeffreys. PLoS Genet 5(12): e1000765. Interview
• Sir Alec J. Jeffreys NCBI; citing Zagorski N. Profile of Alec J. Jeffreys. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2006;103(24):8918-8920. doi:10.1073/pnas.0603953103.
• Professor Alec John Jeffreys Wikipedia
• Wikidata: Item Q511916, en:Wikipedia
• Knaw.nl
• Professor Sir Alec Jeffrey from University of Leicester youtube