As Christmas is almost upon us, we might take a step back and think of goodwill to all. But this year it is tarnished by rising animosity against various migrant groups seeking shelter in the UK. There is no doubt we are living in a world where many find themselves displaced and hoping for a new life elsewhere. This is hardly unusual and marked out most of the 20th century. It surely comes as no surprise in these times. There are many examples of migrants enriching our world and one example is described here. It’s time to reflect on what drives the plight of migrants and we might seek to exercise more tolerance and understanding of what they can offer.
The response of the UK government to migrants seeking refuge on our shores is to increase the deterrent. A threat to ship them out to Rwanda is one such plan that flies in the face of human decency. This brutal tactic is designed to deter illegal migrants. But for legal migrants there is more planned.
One is to increase the minimum earnings from £18,600 to a staggering £38,700 per year to get a family visa. This would have a dramatic effect and the figure appears to be what the government thinks is the minimum that a family needs to survive in the UK without social support. It’s a shame so many of our existing citizens already live well below this level all of the time.
However, today the government relented on this after they were made to realise that most young talented people who come to the UK earn far less than this figure.
Young talent not wanted.
The original plan would have had a profound effect on the recruitment of early career scientists seeking to move to the UK. This would cut off the flow of younger talent and stifle innovation. There are many examples of migrants rising from humble circumstances and who have added greatly to the UK in the past. You don’t have to look far. One good example is the scientists who discovered and invented monoclonal antibodies (Mabs). This revolutionised our understanding of the immune system and led to new therapies and drugs for multiple conditions, including cancer.
Mabs, mabs and more mabs.
The term ‘Mabs’ refers to monoclonal antibodies that have found widespread use in medical research and in highly effective therapies, particularly in targeted cancer treatment. New drugs based upon Mabs are emerging regularly and all have the ending ‘mab’ in their names. For example, Cetuximab emerged as a treatment for colorectal cancer in 2004 and is widely used. In 2023, as many as twenty-eight were either approved or under review. Antibody therapeutics approved or in regulatory review in the EU or US – The Antibody Society.
From humble origins.
The Mab. revolution started back in 1975 with the publication in Nature of ‘Continuous cultures of fused cells secreting antibody of predefined specificity’ by Georges Köhler and César Milstein. This was reproduced for free access by the Journal of Immunology in 2005 as ‘Pillars Article: Continuous cultures of fused cells secreting antibody of predefined specificity’. Nature, 1975, 256 (5517): 495–497).
The ground-breaking work was a practical demonstration of the theoretical predictions of Niels Jerne. Some were later critical that the discoveries were not commercialised citing a lack of awareness by both researchers. However, the final paragraph of their paper shows they were well aware and had freely released the information for others to follow.
By 1984, all three were awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine as the full impact of their discovery was realised.
The migrant’s story.
Most migrants come from difficult and humble circumstances and the simple fact is that all three were such migrants. Neils Jerne was born in London to migrant Danish parents in 2011. He subsequently left the UK to study in Rotterdam, Leiden, and Copenhagen before working elsewhere in Europe and the USA. His is the familiar story of a migrant scientist seeking opportunities.
The stories of Kohler and Milstein also fit this pattern well. César Milstein’ was born in poor circumstances in Argentina in 1927. His family were themselves immigrants to Argentina. Milstein had to work exceptionally hard to succeed in his education and he went onto achieve a British Council Scholarship to work in the Biochemistry Department at Cambridge.
By the time Milstein was established in the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, Georges Köhler arrived in his laboratory as a young postdoctoral researcher in 1974. The next two years of intense laboratory experimentation laid the foundation for many discoveries. Kohler was also born into difficult circumstances in post-war Munich in 1946. He too had to strive to succeed and being accepted into the UK was pivotal to his success.
A lesson at Christmas.
The important message here is that all were migrants at some time. They were ‘Three Wise Men’ it seems. Milstein and Kohler were welcomed to the UK and brought with them incredible scientific riches. The lesson is that the government’s plan to set such a high barrier of earnings for migrant workers would certainly have deterred both from entering the UK if applied in the past. Young postdoctoral researchers are paid far less than £38,700 per year.
That we have a government who failed to appreciate this, before being forced to backtrack by those who warned of the dangers, tells us a lot.
The author, Mike Larkin, retired from Queen’s University Belfast after 37 years teaching Microbiology, Biochemistry and Genetics. Born in Coventry, his parents were also economic migrants to the UK.