Person
McLean, Sibely Jean (1924 - 1994)
- Born
- 14 July 1924
Helensburgh, Scotland - Died
- 10 December 1994
Blackburn, Victoria, Australia - Occupation
- Bacteriologist and Teacher
- Alternative Names
- May, Sibely Jean (married name)
Summary
Sibely McLean graduated bacteriology at the University of Adelaide under the mentorship of Nancy Atkinson. On a working holiday in the United Kingdom she worked on Streptococcus at the Streptococcal Reference Laboratory, Central Public Health Laboratory, Colindale. In subsequent years she published several papers on this genus. On returning to Adelaide she was appointed Lecturer in bacteriology at the University of Adelaide, and was de facto second-in-command for Atkinson. Family commitments took her to Perth, in 1958, where she was a visiting lecturer, and later Melbourne. Having earned her teaching qualifications she became a science teacher at the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Melbourne, in the 1970s. She was an accomplished wildflower artist in watercolour, field naturalist, and genealogist, and worked as a volunteer on the Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller Project.
Details
Chronology
- 1945
- Education - BSc, University of Adelaide
- 1948 - 1950
- Career position - Demonstrator in bacteriology, and research assistant to Nancy Atkinson, University of Adelaide
- 1950
- Career position - Acting lecturer and research assistant in bacteriology, University of Adelaide
- 1951
- Education - MSc, University of Adelaide
- 1951 - 1952
- Career event - Worked at the Streptococcal Reference Laboratory, Central Public Health Laboratory, Colindale, United Kingdom
- 1952
- Life event - Returned to South Australia
- 1953 - 1955
- Career position - Lecturer in Bacteriology, University of Adelaide
- 1970s
- Career position - Science teacher at the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Melbourne
- 1970s
- Education - DipEd., Monash University
- 1990? - 1994
- Career position - Volunteer, Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller Project
Related entries
Colleague
Published resources
Journal Articles
- McLean, Sibley J., 'Identification of strains of Streptococcus pyogenes of types 5, 11, 12, 27 and 44 by the precipitin test for the T antigen', Journal of general microbiology, 9 (1) (1953), 110-8, https://doi.org/10.1099/00221287-9-1-110. Details
- McLean, Sibley J., 'The physiological characteristics of group L Streptococci', Australian journal of experimental biology and medical science, 33 (2) (1955), 275-9, https://doi.org/10.1038/icb.1955.28. Details
- Mclean, Sibley J., 'Bacteriophage typing of strains of Staphylococcus aureus in South Australia', Medical journal of Australia, 43 (2) (1956), 53-7. Details
- Watts, P. S. and McLean, Sibley J., 'Bacteroidies infection in kangaroos', Journal of comparative pathology and therapeutics, 66 (1956), 159-62. Details
Theses
- McLean, S. J., 'Investigation of some characteristics of members of the genus Staphylococcus with particular reference to their bacteriophages', M.Sc., University of Adelaide, 1950, https://library.adelaide.edu.au/theses/09SM/09smm163.pdf. Details
See also
- Carey, Jane, Taking to the field: a history of Australian women in science (Clayton, Vic.: Monash University Press, 2023), 297 pp. Details
Sara Maroske
Created: 31 July 2026