| Authorised form of name | Whittam; Ronald (1925 - 2023); cell physiologist |
| Dates | 1925 - 2023 |
| Nationality | British |
| Place of birth | Butler Green, Chadderton, Oldham, Greater Manchester, England |
| Date of birth | 21 March 1925 |
| Place of death | Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicestershire, England |
| Date of death | 16 August 2023 |
| Occupation | Cell physiologist |
| Research field | Physiology |
| Cell physiology |
| Activity | Education:
Stanley Road Council School; Municipal Technical College, Oldham; University of Manchester (BSc) 1951; King's College, University of Cambridge.
Career:
Left school to work at his parents' bakery (1939); Served Royal Air Force (1943-1947); joined a Medical Research Council unit at the University of Sheffield; Beit Memorial Research Fellow, Physiological Laboratory, University of Cambridge (1955-1958); Lecturer in Biochemistry, University of Oxford (1960-1966); Professor, of Physiology, University of Leicester (1966-1983), where he founded the Laboratory of Physiology at the University, which in 1968 became the Department of Physiology, Professor Emeritus since 1983; Research Worker (1983-1986).
Memberships:
Medical Research Council 1970-1983 |
| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 15/03/1973 |
| Age at election | 47 |
| RSActivity | Committees:
Biological Education Committee
Education Committee (1974-1983) |
| Relationships | Parents: Edward Whittam and May Whittam
Spouse: (m. 1957) Christine Patricia Margaret Lamb
Children: Harvey and Althea |
| PublishedWorks | RCN 20040
RCN 21048 |
| OtherInfo | Ronald Whittam conducted important studies of the mechanism of active transport of ions in animal tissues. He demonstrated the special asymmetry of the ATPase of the red blood cell membrane, which acts only when Na+ is inside and K+ is outside the membrane. He was the first to demonstrate that active transport can exert a feedback control over the rate of cellular metabolism. These concepts, of directionality as an inherent part of an enzyme reaction in membranes, are of fundamental significance for the understanding of the relations between physiological function and the mechanism of enzyme action. |
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| Source | University of Leicester [URL: https://le.ac.uk/about/history/obituaries/2023/ron-whittam; last accessed: 26/03/2025]
Oldham Evening Chronicle, 'Eminent scientist born and raised at Butler Green in Chadderton dies aged 98', 19 August 2023, [URL: https://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/139/main-news/153010/eminent-scientist-born-and-raised-at-butler-green-in-chadderton-dies-aged-98; last accessed: 26/03/2025] |
| Code | NA3972 |
Archives associated with this Fellow
| RefNo | Title | Date |
| GLB/65/43/33 | R Whittam, Laboratory of General Physiology, University of Leicester to Brown | 27 May 1966 |
| GLB/65/100/36 | Brown to R Whittam, Laboratory of General Physiology, University of Leicester | 11 March 1968 |
| GLB/65/100/35 | R Whittam, Laboratory of General Physiology, University of Leicester to Brown | 8 March 1968 |
| EC/1973/31 | Whittam, Ronald: certificate of election to the Royal Society | |
| IM/GA/GRS/6248 | Whittam, Ronald | nd |
| GLB/65/43/31 | R Whittam, Laboratory of General Physiology, University of Leicester to Brown | 10 May 1966 |