The biochemistry department at Trinity College Dublin last weekend organised a "festschrift" for Prof Keith Tipton, who holds the chair of biochemistry and who until recently contributed 21 years as head of department.
A festschrift is a "celebration in publications", says Dr Tim Mantle of TCD, who organised the event. "We had a meeting at which the talks took place, and those will be published by Portland Press in London. Portland is the publishing arm of the Biochemical Society."
Such is Tipton's international reputation that the meeting included 11 talks, many by speakers from abroad. Some of these were taught by Tipton, either at TCD or at his previous post at Cambridge. "A festschrift is pretty rare," says Mantle. "People have to hold somebody in high regard to hold such a meeting."
The event, which took place last Saturday, focused on Tipton's primary research area, the kinetic behaviour of enzymes. Enzymes are proteins in the body that initiate or accelerate reactions inside cells.
Tipton did undergraduate studies at St Andrews in Scotland and a PhD at Cambridge. He moved to TC Dublin in 1977, so the festschrift is also a celebration of his 25 years there. Four of his former students were awarded research chairs in other institutions, including Yale, Glasgow and Leeds.
"It is unusual for somebody to say I have four students who hold major chairs," says Mantle.
Tipton continues to publish "prodigiously", Mantle adds. Pubmed, the Internet research publication site, shows 14 pages associated with him, including 271 papers. "It is really quite astounding, says Mantle.