In 1984, Blackburn co-discovered telomerase, the enzyme that replenishes the telomere, with Carol W Greider.
18 Facts About Elizabeth Blackburn
2.
Elizabeth Blackburn worked in medical ethics, and was controversially dismissed from the Bush administration's President's Council on Bioethics.
3.
Elizabeth Blackburn went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in 1970 and Master of Science in 1972, both from the University of Melbourne in the field of biochemistry.
4.
In 1984, Elizabeth Blackburn was biological researcher and professor of biology and physiology at the University of California, San Francisco, studying the telomere, a structure at the end of chromosomes that protects the chromosome.
5.
On 1 January 2016, Elizabeth Blackburn was interviewed about her studies, discovering telomerase, and her current research.
6.
In 1978, Elizabeth Blackburn joined the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, in the Department of Molecular Biology.
7.
Elizabeth Blackburn became a Professor Emeritus at UCSF at the end of 2015.
8.
Elizabeth Blackburn co-founded the company Telomere Health which offers telomere length testing to the public, but later severed ties with the company.
9.
In 2015, Elizabeth Blackburn was announced as the new President of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California.
10.
Elizabeth Blackburn was appointed a member of the President's Council on Bioethics in 2002.
11.
Elizabeth Blackburn supported human embryonic cell research, in opposition to the Bush Administration.
12.
Dr Elizabeth Blackburn believes that she was dismissed from the Council due to her disapproval of the Bush administration's position against stem cell research.
13.
Scientists and ethicists at the time even went as far to say that Elizabeth Blackburn's removal was in violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972, which "requires balance on such advisory bodies".
14.
Elizabeth Blackburn serves on the Science Advisory Board of the Regenerative Medicine Foundation formerly known as the Genetics Policy Institute.
15.
Elizabeth Blackburn featured in the 2012 Emmy award-winning science documentary, 'Decoding Immortality' by Genepool Productions.
16.
Elizabeth Blackburn tells readers to be wary of clinical pills who proclaim to lengthen or telomeres and protect the body from aging.
17.
Elizabeth Blackburn says that these pills and creams have no scientific proof of being anti-aging supplements, and that the key to preserving our telomeres and stimulating telomerase activity comes from leading a healthy life.
18.
In 2007, Elizabeth Blackburn was listed among Time magazine's 100 people who shape our world.