Purdue News

November 17, 1995

Two Scientists Appointed To Named Professorships

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  Two Purdue University scientists have been appointed to named professorships. William Cramer has been appointed Henry Koffler Professor of Biological Sciences, and Philip Low has been appointed Joseph F. Foster Professor of Chemistry.

The new professorships were established this year to honor outstanding scientists in molecular biology and biochemistry. The board of trustees ratified the appointments today (Friday, 11/17).

Cramer, a native of New York City, received his bachelor's degree in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1959, and a master's degree in physics from the University of Chicago in 1960. He received his doctorate in biophysics from the University of Chicago in 1965, and served as a postdoctoral fellow and research associate at the University of California at San Diego before joining the Purdue faculty in 1968.

His research interests include the relationship of structure and function of protein complexes embedded in cellular membranes. He is internationally recognized for his studies on proteins called cytochromes, which are essential to photosynthesis.

Cramer also has had an impact on policy and education in the field of biophysics. He has taught a course on "Energy Transduction in Biological Membranes," and in 1991 he published a textbook that has become the standard text in the field.

He has received numerous awards, including a Research Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health, the Alexander von Humboldt Award in 1992, a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1993, and the 1988 Herbert N. McCoy Award given by Purdue for outstanding contributions in science.

The Koffler professorship was named in honor of Henry Koffler, who was head of Purdue's Department of Biological Sciences from 1959 to 1975 and later went on to serve as president of the University of Arizona.

Low joined the Purdue faculty in 1976. He received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Brigham Young University in 1971 and a doctorate in biochemistry from the University of California at San Diego in 1975.

He has achieved international recognition for his research in biochemistry, including studies aimed at tracing the molecular signals during plant-pathogen interactions, and analyzing the structure of the human red blood cell membrane.

Low also is known internationally for his work in developing a nondestructive method to deliver large molecules into living cells. The method may someday be used to insert drugs, genes, proteins, antibodies, enzymes, lipids or toxins into cells. Laboratory tests with animals have shown that the method can be used to deliver cancer-fighting agents to cancer cells without disrupting normal cell growth. Human trials may begin within two years.

Low is a past fellow of the International Union Against Cancer, a recipient of the Purdue Cancer Research Award, and a member of a National Institutes of Health study section of hematology. In 1993, he received Purdue's Herbert N. McCoy Award for outstanding contributions in science.

The Foster professorship was named for biochemist Joseph F. Foster, who joined the Purdue faculty in 1954 and served as head of the Department of Chemistry from 1968 to 1973.

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