Eric H. Davidson | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 13, 1937 New York City, New York |
| Died | September 1, 2015 (aged 78) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Pennsylvania (BA, 1958) and Rockefeller University (Ph.D., 1963) |
| Known for | Gene regulatory networks Sea urchin Developmental biology |
| Awards | Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Awardee, A.O. Kowalevsky Medal (2002), International Prize for Biology (2011) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Developmental biology |
| Institutions | California Institute of Technology |
| Thesis | The expression of differentiated character in monolayer tissue culture cells (1963) |
| Doctoral advisor | Alfred Mirsky |
| Doctoral students | Barbara Wold |
| Notes | |
Member of the National Academy of Sciences (1985) and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1980) | |
Eric Harris Davidson (April 13, 1937 – September 1, 2015) was an American developmental biologist at the California Institute of Technology.[1][2] Davidson was best known for his pioneering work on the role of gene regulation in evolution, on embryonic specification and for spearheading the effort to sequence the genome of the purple sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus.[3][4] He devoted a large part of his professional career to developing an understanding of embryogenesis at the genetic level. He wrote many academic works describing his work, including a textbook on early animal development.[5]