Robert Edwards

English physiologist

Born: September 27, 1925 · Died: April 10, 2013

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Who was Robert Edwards?

Sir Robert Geoffrey Edwards (27 September 1925 – 10 April 2013) was a British physiologist and pioneer in reproductive medicine, and in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) in particular. Along with obstetrician and gynaecologist Patrick Steptoe and nurse and embryologist Jean Purdy, Edwards successfully pioneered conception through IVF, which led to the birth of Louise Brown on 25 July 1978. Edwards was born in Batley, Yorkshire, and attended Manchester Central High School on Whitworth Street in central Manchester, after which he served in the British Army, and then completed his undergraduate studies in biology, graduating with an ordinary degree from Bangor University. He studied at the Institute of Animal Genetics and Embryology at the University of Edinburgh, where he was awarded a PhD in 1955 under the supervision of R.A. Beatty and C. H. Waddington. Edwards was the founding editor-in-chief of Human Reproduction in 1986.

Historical significance

They founded the first IVF programme for infertile patients and trained other scientists in their techniques. In 2010, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for the development of in vitro fertilization".

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