Elizabeth Helen Blackburn (born 26 November 1948) is an Australian-American Nobel laureate who is the former president of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

[3] Elizabeth Helen Blackburn, the second of seven children, was born in Hobart, Tasmania, on 26 November 1948, with both her parents being family physicians.

Blackburn then went to receive her PhD in 1975 from Darwin College at the University of Cambridge,[5] for work she did with Frederick Sanger at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology developing methods to sequence DNA using RNA, as well as studying the bacteriophage Phi X 174.

[4][7] During her postdoctoral work at Yale, Blackburn was doing research on the protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila and noticed a repeating codon at the end of the linear rDNA which varied in size.

When she was asked to recall the moment of telomerase discovery she stated:[11]Carol had done this experiment, and we stood, just in the lab, and I remember sort of standing there, and she had this – we call it a gel.

It's an autoradiogram because there were trace amounts of radioactivity that were used to develop an image of the separated DNA products of what turned out to be the telomerase enzyme reaction.

"Her deep insight as a scientist, her vision as a leader, and her warm personality will prove invaluable as she guides the Salk Institute on its continuing journey of discovery".

[16] For their research and contributions to the understanding of telomeres and the enzyme telomerase, Elizabeth Blackburn, Carol Greider, and Jack Szostak were awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

The substantial research on the effects of chromosomal protection from telomerase, and the impact this has on cellular division has been a revolutionary catalyst in the field of molecular biology.

[18] The importance of discovering this enzyme has since led her continued research at the University of California San Francisco, where she studies the effect of telomeres and telomerase activity on cellular aging.

[22] This was followed by expressions of outrage over her removal by many scientists, 170 of whom signed an open letter to the president maintaining that she was fired because of political opposition to her advice.

[26] In recent years Blackburn and her colleagues have been investigating the effect of stress on telomerase and telomeres[27] with particular emphasis on mindfulness meditation.

[31] At the University of California San Francisco, Blackburn currently researches telomeres and telomerase in many organisms, from yeast to human cells.

[34] While studying telomeres and the replenishing enzyme, telomerase, Blackburn discovered a vital role played by these protective caps that revolved around one central idea: ageing of cells.

[35] Once telomeres shorten drastically, the cells can no longer divide, meaning the tissues they replenish with every division would therefore die out, highlighting the ageing mechanism in humans.

[36] Blackburn also tells readers to be wary of clinical pills that proclaim to lengthen or telomeres and protect the body from aging.

She says that these pills and creams have no scientific proof of being anti-aging supplements and that the key to preserving our telomeres and stimulating telomerase activity comes from leading a healthy life.