Marina Seabright (1922-2007)

In conjunction with Her Salisbury Story, the Salisbury Civic Society installed a plaque in September 2023  at the Old Infirmary in Fisherton Street to acknowledge the important work of Dr Marina Agostina Corinna Seabright (1922 -2007).

Marina Seabright  was a geneticist, known for discovering the influential trypsin-banding technique for chromosomes and for leading the Wessex Regional Cytogenetics Unit.  Originally from Calabria in Italy, Marina studied medicine in Sicily. She came to England on her marriage to Harold Seabright, an English sub lieutenant in the Royal Navy volunteer reserves and the couple lived in Ringwood, Hampshire for the rest of their lives. In 1947 she began working in pathology at Salisbury General Infirmary.

Her discovery of the method for trypsin G-banding opened up a new era in medical genetics in 1971, and remains the most commonly used chromosome banding technique. Banding techniques are useful because they allow the structure of chromosomes to be more easily identified, and this has many practical applications such as identifying abnormalities in the structure or number of chromosomes.

Marina went on to study the effects of radiation on chromosomes and was awarded a PhD by the University of Southampton for this work. Not long after this, she was appointed Consultant Scientist and Director of the Regional Cytogenetics Unit in Salisbury.    Marina Seabright retired from her appointment as Director on 31 December 1987 and was awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours list. She died in Ringwood in 2007.