Turi King

Turi King
Born England
Citizenship Canadian-British
Nationality Canadian, British
Fields Genetics, Archaeology, History, Forensics,Genetic Genealogy,Surnames
Institutions University of Leicester
Education BAHons, MSc, PhD
Alma mater
Thesis The relationship between British surnames and Y-chromosomal haplotypes (2008)
Academic advisors Alec Jeffreys
Known for Richard III forensic DNA investigation, surname and Y-DNA research, Non-paternity event research, genetic genealogy and family history, mitochondrial DNA research,

Turi King is a Canadian-British geneticist at the University of Leicester notable for "cracking one of the biggest forensic DNA cases in history"[1] during the exhumation and reburial of Richard III of England.

Education and early life

She was born in England but her family emigrated to Canada when she was a few weeks old and she grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.[1] She studied at the University of British Columbia and then Cambridge University[1] where she read Archaeology and Anthropology. She won a scholarship to study for an MSc in Molecular Genetics at the University of Leicester gaining a first class with distinction. In 2000, she started her doctoral research as a Wellcome Trust Prize Student at the University of Leicester "to specialize in tracing migration patterns by using genetics."[1] She "carried out major research into the relationship between British surnames and the Y chromosome type",[2] her award-winning thesis eventually forming the basis of the book 'Surnames, DNA and Family History' which she co-wrote with Professor David Hey and George Redmonds.

Career

King's early research centred around forensics, genetic genealogy/surnames and using DNA, such as the Y chromosome, to trace past human migrations. Her work has included tracking "the signal of the Viking migration to the north of England" which resulted in her appearing Michael Wood's "The Great British Story – A People’s History on BBC Two"[2] and in Michael Wood's Story of England. Her overarching research themes combine genetics with history, forensics, archaeology, geography and genetic genealogy and it was this background which made her ideally placed to lead the genetic analysis in the King Richard III case.

Public Engagement

King carries out a great deal of public engagement: from public speaking at universities, schools and public events such as the Cheltenham Science Festival and Moscow Science Festival to a Congressional Breakfast on Capitol Hill in Washington and the Queen's Lecture in Berlin. She advises on numerous television programmes and provides genetic expertise to authors such as Patricia Cornwell,[3][4][5] Edward Glover and David McKie.[6]

King has appeared in a number of television and radio documentaries as an expert in genetic genealogy, forensic or ancient DNA expert.[7][8][9][10]

In 2016, King was made an Honorary Fellow of the British Science Association in recognition of her contribution to public engagement in science.[11]

In 2017, King was made Professor of Public Engagement at the University of Leicester. [12]

Personal life

Turi King is a single mother with four children.

Selected works

TV, video and radio appearances

Books

  • Harding, Stephen; Jobling,, Mark; King, Turi (2010). Viking DNA : the Wirral and West Lancashire project (New Edition. ed.). Merseyside: Countyvise Limited. ISBN 978-1907284946. 
  • King, Turi (2014). "What can Genetics Tell us about Vikings in the Wirral and West Lancashire?". In search of the vikings. [S.l.]: Crc Press. ISBN 978-1482207576. 
  • Redmonds, George; King,, Turi; Hey, David (2011). Surnames, DNA, and family history. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199582648. 

Journal articles

  • Balaresque, Patricia; Bowden, Georgina R.; Adams, Susan M.; Leung, Ho-Yee; King, Turi E.; Rosser, Zoë H.; Goodwin, Jane; Moisan, Jean-Paul; Richard, Christelle; Millward, Ann; Demaine, Andrew G.; Barbujani, Guido; Previderè, Carlo; Wilson, Ian J.; Tyler-Smith, Chris; Jobling, Mark A.; Penny, David (19 January 2010). "A Predominantly Neolithic Origin for European Paternal Lineages". PLoS Biology. 8 (1): e1000285. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1000285. 
  • Bowden, G. R.; Balaresque, P.; King, T. E.; Hansen, Z.; Lee, A. C.; Pergl-Wilson, G.; Hurley, E.; Roberts, S. J.; Waite, P.; Jesch, J.; Jones, A. L.; Thomas, M. G.; Harding, S. E.; Jobling, M. A. (2 January 2008). "Excavating Past Population Structures by Surname-Based Sampling: The Genetic Legacy of the Vikings in Northwest England". Molecular Biology and Evolution. 25 (2): 301–309. doi:10.1093/molbev/msm255. 
  • King, Turi E.; Fortes, Gloria Gonzalez; Balaresque, Patricia; Thomas, Mark G.; Balding, David; Delser, Pierpaolo Maisano; Neumann, Rita; Parson, Walther; Knapp, Michael; Walsh, Susan; Tonasso, Laure; Holt, John; Kayser, Manfred; Appleby, Jo; Forster, Peter; Ekserdjian, David; Hofreiter, Michael; Schürer, Kevin (2 December 2014). "Identification of the remains of King Richard III". Nature Communications. 5: 5631. doi:10.1038/ncomms6631. 
  • Scully, Marc; Brown, Steven D.; King, Turi (14 December 2015). "Becoming a Viking: DNA testing, genetic ancestry and placeholder identity". Ethnic and Racial Studies. 39 (2): 162–180. doi:10.1080/01419870.2016.1105991. 

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Waldie, Paul (5 Feb 2013). "Two Canadian links to Richard III". Globe & Mail. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  2. 1 2 "BBC Two - The Great British Story:A People's History. Dr. Turi King". www.bbc.co.uk/. BBC. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  3. ↑ er134. "University of Leicester scientist lends expertise to new Jack the Ripper book — University of Leicester". www2.le.ac.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
  4. ↑ er134. "The Mary Jane Kelly Project — University of Leicester". www2.le.ac.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
  5. ↑ "YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
  6. ↑ Leith, Sam (2013-08-28). "What's in a Surname? A Journey from Abercrombie to Zwicker by David McKie – review". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
  7. ↑ Buerk, Michael; Hughes, Bettany; Barratt, Claire; Jones, Gethin (2012-07-16), Britain's Secret Treasures, retrieved 2017-03-29
  8. ↑ Johnson, Corey (2013-08-04), Secrets, retrieved 2017-03-29
  9. ↑ Farnaby, Simon; Hunt, Leon; Ashdown-Hill, John; Buckley, Richard (2013-02-04), Richard III: The King in the Car Park, retrieved 2017-03-29
  10. ↑ "Orion Launch; Fake Mars trip; XDNA; Richard the Third's skeleton, BBC Inside Science - BBC Radio 4". BBC. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
  11. ↑ "2016 Honorary Fellows revealed". British Science Association. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
  12. ↑ "University of Leicester staff page". Retrieved 2017-06-01.
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