Biography
Anne Mclaren (1927–2007) was a leading and well-respected reproductive biologist of the twentieth century. Her lifelong scientific focus was on germ cells and early mammalian development. Her work contributed to a greater understanding of the relevance of stem cells in the treatment of human disease, and her study of the basic science underpinning infertility treatment aided in the development of various human-assisted reproduction procedures.
Anne Mclaren was honored with numerous prizes for her contributions to the profession, including the March of Dimes and the Japan Prizes (2002 and 2007). During her career, she held positions of high authority in a variety of sectors, including founding director of the Medical Research Council Mammalian Development Unit at University College London. Fullerian Professor of Physiology at the Royal Institution (1990–1955), President of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (1993–1994), and Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (1998).
Mclaren’s impact stretched beyond science. She was, for example, the first woman to occupy the office in the Royal Society’s 330-year existence, becoming Foreign Secretary in 1991 (through 1996) and Vice President a year later (1992–1996), and she did much to encourage the advancement of women in science.
She also participated in public discussions about science ethics as a member of the Warnock Committee, which was tasked with making recommendations to the government regarding the regulation of human fertilization and embryology in the aftermath of the ‘legal vacuum’ created by the birth of Louise Brown in 1978.
Background
Anne Mclaren, 2nd Baron Aberconway, was the daughter of Henry Mclaren and Christabel McNaughten. Her family lived in London and Bodnant, north Wales, and she studied zoology at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. She earned her DPhil in 1952 after completing her postgraduate degree at Oxford under the supervision of Kingsley Sanders. Her thesis was about mouse neurotropic viruses. She married Donald Michie the same year she received her degree.
Anne and Donald collaborated at University College London (1952–55) and at the Royal Veterinary College, London (1955–59). During this time, the pair investigated the influence of the maternal environment on the number of lumbar vertebrae in mice. This discovery piqued their interest in embryo transfer and implantation techniques, demonstrating that it was possible to culture mouse embryos in a test tube and obtain live embryos after inserting them in the uterus of a surrogate mother.
Following her divorce from Donald in 1959, Anne continued her work at the Institute of Animal Genetics on mammalian fertility, embryo transfer techniques, immunocontraception, and the mixing of early embryos to form chimeras (organisms consisting of two or more genetically different kinds of tissue).
Her 1976 book on chimeras became a classic in the area (see cover image). She was appointed director of the Medical Research Council’s mammalian development unit at University College London in 1974. Her lifelong interest in the genesis and differentiation of mammalian primordial germ cells began here. Her book, Germ Cells and Soma: A New Look at an Old Problem, was published in 1980 and quickly became a classic on the subject.
After leaving the Medical Research Council in 1992, she became a major research associate at the Gurdon Institute in Cambridge, a position she held until her death in a vehicle accident in 2007.