Person Battersby; Sir; Alan Rushton (1925 - 2018); organic chemist Battersby Alan Rushton Sir organic chemist 1925 - 2018 British Male Winmarleigh Gardens, Leigh, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom 04 March 1925 19250304 Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, United Kingdom 10 February 2018 20180210 Memorial service: University church of Great St Mary’s, Cambridge, England, United Kingdom (28 April 2018).

Organic chemist Biology Organic chemistry Chemistry Education: King Street primary school; Leigh grammar school; Salford Technical College; Manchester University MSc 1947; PhD 1949 Career: Joined Callenders Cables to support the war effort (1940); assistant lecturer at St Andrews (1949-1953); sabbatical leave in the USA as a Commonwealth Fund fellow (1950-1952); moved to Bristol as a lecturer in chemistry (1954); research chair of chemistry at the University of Liverpool (1962); Professor of organic chemistry at the University of Cambridge and fellow of St Catharine’s College (1969); 1702 Chair of Chemistry (1988-1992); Emeritus Professor (1992). Honours: Kt 1992 Awards/Medals: Wolf Prize in Chemistry 1989 Tetrahedron Prize for Creativity 1995 Welch Award for his lifetime achievements in biosynthesis and biochemistry 2000 Parents: William Battersby (1883-1968), master plumber, and Hilda, née Rushton (1891-1974). Spouse: Margaret Ruth Hart (1925-1997), schoolteacher, daughter of Thomas (Tom) Hart, mechanical engineer, and Annie, née Lambourne. Children: Martin and Stephen. Distinguished for his research on vitamin B12, chlorophyll and haem-dubbed the ‘pigments of life’-as well as plant alkaloids, which are used to make certain anaesthetics and pain medication, including morphine. Particularly notable was Alan’s work on the structure and artificial production of cyanocobalamin, a chemical compound used to treat people with vitamin B12 deficiency. Successfully identified many biogenetic precursors-chemicals that precede others in metabolic reactions. He deduced biochemical reaction pathways by following the decay of radioactive tracers — a technique in which a particular element in a compound or biomolecule is replaced with its corresponding radioactive partner, or isotope. Royal Society roles: Council: 1973-1975 Medals and prizes: Davy Medal 1977; Royal Medal 1984; Copley Medal 2000 Lectures: Bakerian 1984 Fellow 17/03/1966 41 DNB The Royal Society Fellows Directory, Sir Alan Battersby FRS, [URL: https://royalsociety.org/people/alan-battersby-11051/; last accessed: 09/09/2025] Battersby A R, GA WRS 9508.jpg ©Godfrey Argent Studio International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) - Ottawa 1996 ISBN 0-9696035-3-3 National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/action/doSearch?ContribAuthorRaw=Battersby%2C+Alan+Rushton RCN R82113 RCN 12995 RCN 10394 RCN R81204 https://pictures.royalsociety.org/results?mi_search_type=adv&mi_adv_search=yes&adv_person_id=AUTH624 4 Mar 1925 - 10 Feb 2018 The past Fellows entries are under continuous revision. If you have queries or additional information to contribute, please contact Library@royalsociety.org. Content in external sources is not controlled by the Royal Society and historical sources may include content that is now unacceptable. Reviewed on 09/09/2025 as part of the Name Authority Project update. NA6191 21/11/2001 Andyg pmab 09/09/2025 RS_NET\VidaM Yes http://viaf.org/viaf/270503542 e60304d9-231e-4967-b270-d8d110eac576