The BSHI Honorary president was appointed by the BSHI executive committee. The appointed president was an opinion leader of high professional standing amongst practitioners in Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics or an associated scientific or medical discipline. They served a four year term of office beginning and ending at the BSHI AGM.
In 2021 it was decided by the Main Committee that BSHI as a society is no longer in a position where the assistance of a person of standing in the wider scientific community is necessary to represent our interests. As such Professor Steven Marsh will be our last Honorary President. This decision was ratified by the membership at the virtual AGM on 15th September 2021.
BSHI Honorary President 2016 - 2021
Professor Steven GE Marsh, BSc PhD ARCS
Director of Bioinformatics & Deputy Director of Research, Anthony Nolan Research Institute.
Professor of Immunogenetics, Cancer Institute, University College London.
Prof Marsh is Deputy Director of Research and Head of Immunogenetics at the Anthony Nolan Research Institute and Co-Director of the Histocompatibility Laboratory. He is also Professor of Immunogenetics at University College London and Chairman of the World Health Organization (WHO) Nomenclature Committee for Factors of the HLA System, and the WHO/IUIS Nomenclature Committee for Killer-cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors (KIR). He is currently a President of the International HLA and Immunogenetics Workshop, President of the British Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics (BSHI) and formerly President of the European Federation for Immunogenetics (EFI). In 2016 he became Editor-in-Chief of the journal HLA (formerly Tissue Antigens).
The aim of his research group is to improve the outcome of haematopoietic stem cell transplantation by understanding genetic differences, particularly the matching of HLA and KIR genes, between patients and donors. This work is undertaken by both bioinformatics and laboratory-based projects. He initiated the IPD-IMGT/HLA and IPD-KIR Databases, which are the worldwide resource for HLA and KIR sequences.
BSHI Honorary Presidents
| 2016 - 2021 | Professor Steven GE Marsh | 2012 - 2016 | Professor John L Forsythe | 2008 - 2011 | Dr Jackie M Cornish | 2005 - 2008 | Professor J Andrew Bradley | 2002 - 2005 | Professor Sir Magdi H Yacoub | 1999 - 2002 | Professor John W Fabre | 1996 - 1999 | Professor Benjamin A Bradley | 1994 - 1996 | Professor Sir Peter J Morris | 1992 - 1994 | Professor Richard R Batchelor | 1990 - 1992 | Professor Sir Walter F Bodmer |