Gerald N. Wogan, the Underwood Prescott Professor of Organic Engineering, Chemistry, and Toxicology emeritus at MIT, passed absent following a lengthy health issues on July 16 at the age of 91.
“Jerry” Wogan was a revolutionary scientist who isolated, characterised, and recognized the mechanisms of motion of numerous environmental toxins of fantastic relevance to world public health and fitness. His management on aflatoxin exploration, a toxin that impacts the life of billions of individuals, is a paradigm for environmental toxicology. His operate ranged from primary mechanistic experiments at the cell level to the advancement of animal styles of disease, the review of condition patterns in populations, and, ultimately, the progress of brokers that induce biochemical pathways that shield persons from toxin-induced disease.
During his 60-calendar year job, Wogan skilled in excess of 75 graduate pupils and postdocs, who on their own went on to grow to be leaders in the environmental wellbeing subject. Previous college student John D. Groopman PhD ’79, who led environmental well being sciences at Johns Hopkins University for 20 several years, remembers: “When Jerry was a fantastic scientific leader highly regarded by his friends, it was his humanity and commitment to the translation of fundamental science to the public’s good that is his long lasting legacy to his learners and their pupils in transform.”
John Essigmann PhD ’76, the previous director of the MIT Heart for Environmental Wellness Sciences and affiliate head of chemistry, claims, “Jerry was usually open up to new tips and experienced a gift for getting an thought and projecting its impression on the world-wide stage. He inspired us to feel big and see the broader affect of our do the job.”
Wogan was born in 1930 in the railroad city of Altoona, Pennsylvania. His father was a railroad employee, and Wogan made the decision to show up at Juniata Higher education in 1947 in portion due to the fact his father experienced a company pass that authorized him to go to his son at university. Wogan worked his way through college or university as a truck driver and was a member of the Teamsters’ Union. In 1951, Wogan moved on to graduate function at the University of Illinois at Urbana, the place he researched physiology, biochemistry, and microbiology with eminent physiologist Robert E. Anderson, and satisfied his upcoming spouse, Holly, a special training teacher who grew to become a surrogate mother or father to generations of Wogan lab users. The two married in 1957, the calendar year Wogan acquired his PhD.
Right after his doctoral do the job and a transient educating job at Rutgers College, Wogan sat by chance on an airplane future to Institute Professor emeritus Nevin Scrimshaw, recruiting faculty for what has come to be the MIT Department of Organic Engineering (Study course 20). Wogan so amazed Scrimshaw during that flight that he was recruited to the MIT college and sooner or later took about as section head from 1979 to 1987.
In early get the job done, Wogan and his longtime collaborator, chemist George Büchi, isolated a fungal toxin called aflatoxin B1 from peanuts infested with a fungus, Aspergillus flavus. In a chemistry and community well being milestone, they recognized the composition of the toxin and founded techniques for measuring it in meals and other environmental samples. The translation of this fundamental exploration to international plan and regulation of a potent carcinogen was a distinctive achievement that has impacted how the U.S. Food stuff and Drug Administration, Environmental Defense Agency, and Worldwide Company for Investigate on Most cancers (IARC) assess likely carcinogens. Dependent on this investigate, Wogan participated in Volume 1 of the IARC analysis of possible human carcinogens in 1972. This IARC program has grow to be the gold conventional for cancer hazard assessment.
Wogan then turned to Southeast Asia, exactly where he suspected that aflatoxin might be liable for an epidemic of liver cancer. With Thai collaborators, Wogan and his pupil Ronald Shank ’59, PhD ’65 set up an unequivocal association concerning aflatoxin degrees in the foodstuff source and the incidence of liver cancer in Thailand. Later on replicated in sub-Saharan Africa and other sections of Asia, this part of his do the job represents a milestone in epidemiology.
Back again at MIT, Büchi built derivatives of aflatoxin, and Wogan proven animal styles, some of which are nonetheless utilized these days as pivotal checks for the cancer-producing opportunity of environmental brokers. Wogan’s do the job on aflatoxin swiftly expanded to other fungal and bacterial toxins, fossil gasoline combustion products and solutions, poisonous foodborne amines, and the significant roles of infection inflammation as a induce and accelerant of cancer.
Concerning his perform on persistent bacterial bacterial infections, collaborator Jim Fox responses: “Jerry’s collaborative reports with MIT colleagues Peter Dedon, John Essigmann, Steven Tannenbaum ’58, PhD ’62, and myself, probing the critical function of reactive oxygen species in the pathophysiology of long-term inflammation and carcinogenesis are distinctive, and I believe that, particularly essential.”
Collaborator Tannenbaum recollects, “Jerry Wogan invented the paradigm for exploring an environmental carcinogen, its fat burning capacity into a DNA damaging agent, creating biomarkers for molecular epidemiology, and monoclonal antibodies for environmental surveillance. His team of graduate learners led the way with his guidance and wound up with 5 faculty positions at major universities, exactly where they ongoing to generate the industry of most cancers epidemiology.” Tannenbaum, who took the lead in developing the Wogan Lectureship at MIT and went on to make pathfinding contributions on the roles of nitric oxide in human health and illness, also wrote that Wogan helped him as an early-occupation scientist go into toxicology.
The impact of Wogan’s get the job done on aflatoxin was felt strongly throughout the world, the place up to 5 billion folks are possibly exposed to the toxin every working day. Mathuros Ruchirawat PhD ’75, vice president for investigation at the Chulabhorn Investigate Institute in Bangkok, demonstrates on the impact Wogan’s work experienced on international public overall health, exploration, and educating in Southeast Asia: “His analysis has enormous and very long-long lasting impacts on general public well being in Thailand the amplified general public consciousness of aflatoxins as a key chance factor for liver cancer has contributed to the prevention of this condition in the nation.”
William Suk, who directs the countrywide Superfund Investigation Program and performs a pivotal job in U.S.-Thailand relations, recollects that Jerry’s fantastic attributes as a scientist had been complemented by his capacity to mentor many others: “I recall most his capacity to provide sage suggestions to all.”
Three of Wogan’s previous graduate pupils and two other MIT professors even now educate at Bangkok every single summer months in a graduate degree method Wogan influenced to address ability setting up in the establishing earth. Colleague Dedon suggests: “Jerry’s eyesight of science for the community good experienced legitimate worldwide impression that was a great deal broader than the facts of his investigation.”
Ram Sasisekharan, a co-founder of the Bangkok system, claims: “Jerry was a true inspiration — focused on problems that have to have remedies, and was a bold acquire on intricate international challenges.”
A lot of of Wogan’s colleagues went off to implement their toxicology abilities in the pharmaceutical arena.
Gerald McMahon, former president of Sugen and developer of quite a few authorised anticancer therapies, suggests: “Jerry’s inspiration and enthusiasm to get a threat and pursue innovation was inspiring and served me very well in my biotech job.”
Yet another marketplace-centered colleague, Alexander Wood, former government director in the oncology department of Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Investigate and at present a senior lecturer in organic engineering at MIT, remembers Jerry as staying “persistently engaged in a wide array of subject areas in the causation, avoidance, and procedure of most cancers, and cheerfully eager to provide sound assistance and standpoint.”
Wogan was recognized by quite a few honors. He was a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (1977) and the National Academy of Drugs (1994). He been given the Charles S. Mott Prize of the Standard Motors Cancer Study Foundation (2005), the Medal of Honor of the Intercontinental Company for Research on Cancer (2010), The Princess Chulabhorn Gold Medal (2012), the Princess Takamatsu Most cancers Exploration Fund award (2001), the Modern society of Toxicology life span scholar award (2004), the Chemical Industries Institute of Toxicology Founders’ award (1999), as nicely as distinguished alumnus awards from his alma maters, Juniata Higher education (2010) and the University of Illinois (1995).
Wogan’s spouse of about 50 many years, Holly, handed absent in 2013. He is survived by his daughter Christine and her partner John his son Eugene and his wife Vicky a few grandchildren and two wonderful-grandchildren.
Previous students Essigmann, Groopman, and Robert Croy PhD ’79 lately reminisced about the Wogan laboratory’s several adventures, which reflected Wogan’s belief that scientists must get out of the laboratory and experience the exterior entire world. On 1 journey, the young users of the Wogan-Büchi group crossed the 45-kilometer Pemigewasset Wilderness in New Hampshire’s White Mountains on skis, irrespective of 5 ft of snow, brutal terrain, and subfreezing temperatures. As was usual of his design and style, Wogan experienced chilled champagne waiting at the finish of this very long journey. He taught his team that tricky function and a task effectively completed are sweeter if one celebrates it in model. They also acquired that their education and learning at MIT was a journey, and that such journeys are best taken with close friends. As a testimonial to this method of investigation team management, it is placing that so a lot of of the previous Wogan research groups are still close pals now, related by the prevalent bond of their time in his laboratory.
Wogan was a repeated participant in the Aspen Cancer Meeting, which the Wogan household has designated as a charity for people who wish to donate in his title.