Charles ffrench-Constant explained

Birth Date:	5 November 1954
Field:	Neurology
Work Institutions:	University of Cambridge University of Edinburgh
Doctoral Advisor:	Martin Raff
Thesis Year:	1986

Charles Kenvyn ffrench-Constant FRCP^[1] FMedSci FRSE is a neurology researcher, specialising in multiple sclerosis.^[2] He has been recognised for his "fundamental and sustained contributions that underpin much contemporary research in developmental and regenerative neuroscience".

Education and early career

ffrench-Constant gained an MA in Physiology from the University of Cambridge and an MB, BChir in Medicine from Middlesex Hospital in 1980. As a graduate student in the laboratory of Martin Raff at University College London, ffrench-Constant discovered that there are small numbers of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) in cell suspensions prepared from adult rat optic nerves.^{[3] [4]} He gained his PhD in neuroscience from UCL in 1986. Following a postdoctoral fellowship at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he returned to Cambridge and took up a postdoctoral fellowship at the Wellcome/CRC institute (now the Gurdon Institute).

Later career

ffrench-Constant started his own laboratory in Cambridge in 1991, focusing on developmental and regenerative biology. From 1999–2007 he was Professor of Neurological Genetics at Cambridge. In 2007, he moved to become Professor of Medical Neurology at the University of Edinburgh. He has been co-Director of the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic since 2012 and from 2010–2015 was Director of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine.^{[5] [6]}

In March 2021, the University of East Anglia announced that ffrench-Constant had been appointed as Pro-Vice-Chancellor for the faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, starting June 2021.^[7]

Awards and honours

ffrench-Constant was elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2017, and as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2018. He was awarded the Chancellor's Award for Research Excellence in 2019, in recognition of his outstanding research in the field of Neurobiology.^[8]

Personal life

ffrench-Constant enjoys sailing and walking, and is a season ticket holder at Norwich City F.C.

Notes and References

1. Ffrench-Constant, Prof. Charles Kenvyn, (born 5 Nov. 1954), Professor of Medical Neurology, 2008–16, now Professorial Fellow, Co-Director, Centre for Multiple Sclerosis Research, since 2008, and Director, Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, since 2013, University of Edinburgh . Who's Who . 1 December 2007 . 10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U42277.
2. Web site: Charles ffrench-Constant Research Group . The University of Edinburgh . 25 August 2020 . en.
3. Web site: Raff . Martin . Autobiography chapter . 25 August 2020.
4. ffrench-Constant . Charles . Raff . Martin C. . Proliferating bipotential glial progenitor cells in adult rat optic nerve . Nature . February 1986 . 319 . 6053 . 499–502 . 10.1038/319499a0. 3945333 . 1986Natur.319..499F . 4254924 .
5. Web site: History of CRM . The University of Edinburgh . May 2020 . 25 August 2020 . en.
6. Web site: New Director . The University of Edinburgh . May 2020 . 25 August 2020 . en.
7. Web site: UEA appoints new Pro-Vice-Chancellor of medicine and health sciences - UEA . www.uea.ac.uk . 16 March 2021.
8. Web site: Professor Charles ffrench-Constant has received the 2019 Chancellor's Research Award . Edinburgh Neuroscience . 25 August 2020 . en . 7 October 2019.