Posted 6 September 2024
It is with sadness that we acknowledge the death of Dr Frank Morgan (1940-2024), SVI’s second Director.
Dr Morgan joined the Institute as Director in 1973, a St Vincent’s graduate returning from Columbia University in New York. In addition to his own research into release products of platelets and pregnancy hormones, Dr Morgan’s skills and experience in protein chemistry were much valued in a consortium of Melbourne-based institutes established to isolate, purify and characterise the hormone, inhibin.
While maintaining the international reputation of the Institute in the area of protein purification and sequencing, Dr Morgan made the notably valuable decision to extend its research activities by establishing the first protein crystallographic laboratory for the three-dimensional study of proteins in Australia (outside of CSIRO), with the recruitment of Neil Isaacs.
In his time as Director, Dr Morgan presided over further growth of the Institute’s reputation in protein structure as well as the move of the Institute to a new building in its current position on campus. He resigned as SVI Director in 1988, going on to roles at La Trobe University, the Commonwealth Department of Health and the Department of Veterans Affairs.