Kenneth Reid is distinguished for his outstanding work on the protein chemistry and molecular biology of the complement system — an important part of our innate immune system, which provides immediate protection against infections. Kenneth is recognised internationally as a leader in the field of complement chemistry.

He was the first to characterise the most unusual of complement components, the C1q complex, and went on to identify its three chains and subunit structure. Kenneth subsequently cloned the genes for all three chains. He also characterised the structures of a number of serum proteins and lung surfactant proteins known as the collectins, and analysed their functions in providing innate immunity in the bloodstream and lung surfactant.

Kenneth is a Fellow of EMBO, the European Molecular Biology Organization, and was a founding member of the Academy of Medical Sciences. He received a European Complement Network Medal in recognition of his contribution to complement research. He is an author on approximately 300 scientific papers based on his research, and has served on the editorial boards of prestigious journals.