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John Treherne
John Edwin Treherne (15 May 1929 – 23 September 1989) was an English entomologist who specialized in insect biochemistry and physiology and conducted extensive experimental studies. He was also a noted author, including the historically located The Galapagos Affair (1983) which he wrote after spending some time in the Galapagos conducting research.
Treherne was born in Swindon and went to Headlands School, Swindon where his childhood friends included Desmond Morris and Diane Dors. He then studied zoology at the Bristol University, after which he spent a summer at Uppsala University, Sweden, where his interest in insect physiology originated.
He was called up to do his national service in the Royal Army Medical Corps where he met the biologist Trevor Shaw. The two of them would discuss evolution while on guard duty, and were punished to patrol in the snow by a superior officer, a Christian fundamentalist. Treherne then feigned agreement with the officer that fossils had been planted by the devil and as a result spent time indoors next to a fire. He joked later in life that pragmatism and opportunism had a role in the survival of the fittest.
After the army, he joined the Insect Physiology Unit at Downing College in Cambridge under Vincent Wigglesworth as a lecturer and reader. In 1955 he worked with the Agricultural Research Council to study digestion in Periplaneta americana, making use of isotopes to trace the movement of glucose and trehalose.
In 1971 Treherne became a Reader in Experimental Biology at Downing, heading the chemistry and physiology lab and studying insect neurobiology, gut physiology, the chemistry of circadian rhythms and other biochemical studies in insects, annelids and molluscs. During this period he collaborated with Simon Maddrell, Yves Pichon, Michael Bate, Malcolm Burrows and Roger Moreton. His students included Mike Berridge, Peter Evans, Nancy Lane, David Sattelle, Philip Schofield, and Helen Skaer. Treherne was President of Downing College from 1985 until 1988.
He demonstrated the blood-brain barrier in insects, among the few invertebrates to have them. Among his ideas was the "Trafalgar Effect", that groups of Halobates could relay indication of a predator so that even the most distant individuals could take evasive action well before the predator became visible to them.
Treherne served as an editor for several journals, and was the vice-president of the Royal Entomological Society in 1967-68. His scientific books included The Neurochemistry of Arthropods (Cambridge University Press, 1966) and (as editor, with James Beament) Physiology of the Insect Central Nervous System (Academic Press, 1965).
In later life he began to take an interest in applying science to unsolved criminal mysteries and began to write books for pleasure. He was a close friend of P.D. James, and helped her set up the P.D. James Prize for creative writing by undergraduates. His publications included:
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John Treherne
John Edwin Treherne (15 May 1929 – 23 September 1989) was an English entomologist who specialized in insect biochemistry and physiology and conducted extensive experimental studies. He was also a noted author, including the historically located The Galapagos Affair (1983) which he wrote after spending some time in the Galapagos conducting research.
Treherne was born in Swindon and went to Headlands School, Swindon where his childhood friends included Desmond Morris and Diane Dors. He then studied zoology at the Bristol University, after which he spent a summer at Uppsala University, Sweden, where his interest in insect physiology originated.
He was called up to do his national service in the Royal Army Medical Corps where he met the biologist Trevor Shaw. The two of them would discuss evolution while on guard duty, and were punished to patrol in the snow by a superior officer, a Christian fundamentalist. Treherne then feigned agreement with the officer that fossils had been planted by the devil and as a result spent time indoors next to a fire. He joked later in life that pragmatism and opportunism had a role in the survival of the fittest.
After the army, he joined the Insect Physiology Unit at Downing College in Cambridge under Vincent Wigglesworth as a lecturer and reader. In 1955 he worked with the Agricultural Research Council to study digestion in Periplaneta americana, making use of isotopes to trace the movement of glucose and trehalose.
In 1971 Treherne became a Reader in Experimental Biology at Downing, heading the chemistry and physiology lab and studying insect neurobiology, gut physiology, the chemistry of circadian rhythms and other biochemical studies in insects, annelids and molluscs. During this period he collaborated with Simon Maddrell, Yves Pichon, Michael Bate, Malcolm Burrows and Roger Moreton. His students included Mike Berridge, Peter Evans, Nancy Lane, David Sattelle, Philip Schofield, and Helen Skaer. Treherne was President of Downing College from 1985 until 1988.
He demonstrated the blood-brain barrier in insects, among the few invertebrates to have them. Among his ideas was the "Trafalgar Effect", that groups of Halobates could relay indication of a predator so that even the most distant individuals could take evasive action well before the predator became visible to them.
Treherne served as an editor for several journals, and was the vice-president of the Royal Entomological Society in 1967-68. His scientific books included The Neurochemistry of Arthropods (Cambridge University Press, 1966) and (as editor, with James Beament) Physiology of the Insect Central Nervous System (Academic Press, 1965).
In later life he began to take an interest in applying science to unsolved criminal mysteries and began to write books for pleasure. He was a close friend of P.D. James, and helped her set up the P.D. James Prize for creative writing by undergraduates. His publications included: