Who's in who's out?

LEEDS

Terry Rabbitts (pictured) admits that it will be a "wrench" for him to leave Cambridge University to become the director of Leeds University's new £20 million Institute of Molecular Medicine.

Dr Rabbitts has been at Cambridge's Laboratory of Molecular Biology for 30 years.

He describes the institution as "probably the best in the world", and through his work there he has established a reputation as one of the UK's leading cancer scientists. So why is he leaving?

"Leeds offers fantastic opportunities to translate my work into clinical use. The interface at Leeds between basic and clinical research is excellent because the university has clinical people who also have duties in St James's University Hospital," he said.

"The LMB has made some major discoveries, but it is not set up to translate basic research into developing drugs and their application in hospital."

Dr Rabbitts said he is excited about taking forward his work on mutations in cells that can trigger cancer. He said: "If there were ways of identifying early stages of mutations, these would be interesting targets for drugs."

IN

Stephen Coleman joins Leeds University from the Oxford Internet Institute to become chair in political communications.

Andrew Gouldson is taking up a chair in sustainability research. He leaves London School of Economics.

Sue Yeandle moves from Sheffield Hallam University to take up a chair in sociology.

OUT

David Clarke has left Leeds University to take up a chair in human geography at the University of Wales, Swansea.

Carol Smart , professor of sociology, has left to join Manchester University's Centre for Family, Kinship and Childhood.

Simon Baumberg , OBE, retires as professor of bacterial genetics.