Yvonne Barr

Yvonne Balding[2][3] (née Barr;[2] 11 March 1932 – 13 February 2016)[3] was an Irish virologist who co-discovered the Epstein–Barr virus in 1964.[4]

Yvonne Barr
Born(1932-03-11)11 March 1932
Ireland[1]
Died13 February 2016(2016-02-13) (aged 83)
Melbourne, Australia
Alma materTrinity College Dublin
University of London
Known forEpstein–Barr virus
Scientific career
FieldsVirology
Doctoral advisorMichael Anthony Epstein

Education and career

Barr was born in Ireland[1] and graduated with honours in zoology from Trinity College, Dublin.[5] Following her graduation Barr held several posts at veterinary and medical research laboratories in the UK and Canada. In 1963 Barr was the first of two research assistants employed by the English pathologist and virologist Michael Anthony Epstein, who had received a research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).[6]

Barr, along with her research supervisor Epstein, discovered the Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) during her PhD studies in 1964 at Middlesex Hospital.[7][8] Prior to determining specifics about EBV, Epstein, Barr, and Bert Achong published their preliminary research in The Lancet.[9] Barr was instrumental in the discovery of the Epstein-Barr virus, also called human herpesvirus 4, by preparing the samples used for experimentation.[8]

She joined the team at the Bland Sutton Institute of Pathology of Middlesex Hospital Medical School, University of London in 1963. Barr graduated from the University of London in 1966 with a PhD.[7]

Personal life

Upon moving to Melbourne, she married Stuart Balding and had two children. Barr died in Melbourne, Australia at the age of 83.[3]

References
  1. James 2009: "Barr [...] was born in Eire".
  2. Yvonne Barr's video greeting at the EBV 50th anniversary conference in 2014
  3. "Yvonne Balding Obituary". The Age. 19 February 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  4. "Barr, Yvonne M. (1932-) – People and organisations". Trove. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  5. James, D. Geraint (1 May 2009). "A chance meeting". QJM. 102 (5): 365–366. doi:10.1093/qjmed/hcn167. ISSN 1460-2725. PMID 19318370.
  6. Crawford, Dorothy H.; Rickinson, Alan; Johannessen, Ingólfur (2014). Cancer Virus: The Story of Epstein-Barr Virus. OUP Oxford. pp. 29–30. ISBN 9780199653119.
  7. "Encyclopedia of Australian Science". Retrieved 27 December 2013.
  8. McGrath, Paula (6 April 2014). "Cancer virus discovery helped by delayed flight". BBC News. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  9. Chen D, Yen-Lieberman B (2016). Clinical Virology Manual, Fifth Edition: Chapter 28: Epstein-Barr Virus. Washington, DC: ASM Press. pp. 387–398. doi:10.1128/9781555819156.ch28.
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