Should I emphasize his scientific achievements? These consistently revolved around cell-mediated cytotoxicity and cell death, notably his 1973 discovery, while working as a PhD student in Ivan Roitt's laboratory, of cytotoxic `null' lymphoid cells (later known as NK cells and described independently at about the same time in Stockholm and at the NIH). In 1992, he described the rat serine esterase fragmentin, also known as Granzyme B, and subsequently studied the role of this molecule together with perforin in one of the pathways of lymphoid cell-mediated cell death. Starting in 1994, he published reports of the evolutionarily fascinating role of cell cycle molecules such as CDC2 in cell death, a chapter that is probably far from closed, and, more recently, studies of the role of the Bcl-2 family member BNIP3 in caspase-independent cell death. More generally, he contributed to several important facets of the molecular mechanism(s) of normal and tumour cell death.
Should I recall how much he did for the development of research in his home town, Winnipeg, where he returned after training in the United States and England? He worked there for many years, until the very last days of his life, and successfully built up the Manitoba Institute of Cell Biology there, which now includes 13 research teams working mostly on cancer and cell death, perhaps the professional achievement of which he was the most proud. He was an excellent ambassador for Canadian science and the University of Manitoba, and, more generally, he provided inspiration to Canadian (and other) scientists. His contributions were recognized, in particular, through the award of the CSI Cinader Award and of a Canadian Research Chair.
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