Professor Basten has earned an international reputation for his work on cell-cell interactions in both immune response and tolerance. He is best known for his innovative work on T cell dependence of eosinophilia , Fc receptors on B cells and the phenomenon of suppressor cell memory, and most recently for the development of a unique transgenic model which has shed new light on the mechanism of self-tolerance in B cells. His contributions to immunology have been recognised by the award of the Inaugural Wellcome Australia Medal for distinguished scientific achievement in the field of immunology in 1980, election to the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences in 1981 and selection as the 1989 Florey Lecturer of the Royal Society, London.