Peter Colman

Peter Malcolm Colman is a leading scientist born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1944. Today, he chairs the department of structural biology at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research.

Colman's academic journey began at the University of Adelaide. After completing his undergraduate degree in physics in 1966, he received his doctorate in 1969 as a result of his studies on the chemical structure of parabanic acid complexes under the supervision of Harry Medlin. The experiences he gained during this period formed a solid basis for his subsequent research.

Colman's scientific work focuses mainly on the field of structural biology and reveals important findings, especially regarding the human B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2) protein. Another groundbreaking work in the scientific world was to analyze the three-dimensional structure of influenza virus neuraminidase. This discovery enabled him to lead the development of zanamivir, the first neuraminidase inhibitor for influenza.

In this way, it gave a new perspective on designing drugs against moving targets. Their findings also laid the foundation for strategies for stockpiling medicines in the event of a possible pandemic. He also made valuable contributions to the structural studies of antibodies and antibody-antigen complexes. These studies were published in prestigious journals such as Nature, The Journal of Molecular Biology and Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology.

Colman's scientific excellence and contributions to society have also been recognized with various awards. He was elected a member of the Royal Society in 2014. In 2001, he was honored with the Centenary Medal for his services to Australian society and the field of structural biology. He was also elected a member of the Australian Academy of Science in 1989 and a member of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering in 1997. His scientific achievements were crowned with the Macfarlane Burnet Medal, which he received in 1995.