Renowned Scientist and Nobel Winner Passes Away at 87
David Baltimore, a highly respected molecular biologist and former president of a leading technical institute, who once found himself in the heart of a contentious fraud allegation against a colleague, has passed away at 87 due to complications from cancer. His groundbreaking work, which challenged the existing understanding that cellular information could only move in one direction, earned him the prestigious 1975 Nobel Prize in Physiology. He is survived by his wife of over five decades, Alice Huang, who is a biologist, as well as a daughter and a granddaughter.
Trailblazing Contributions to Science
Baltimore's remarkable contributions to virology, immunology, cancer research, and AIDS have revolutionized the fields of biology and medicine. He played a pivotal role in shaping the careers of many students and postdocs, was widely admired for his generosity as a colleague, and was instrumental in leading significant scientific institutions. Additionally, Baltimore was actively involved in international efforts to establish ethical limits for biological advances.
Early Life and Achievements
Baltimore was born in New York City in 1938, the son of a garment industry worker and a psychologist. At a young age, he showed exceptional academic abilities and decided to pursue a career in science after spending a summer studying mouse genetics at a laboratory in Maine during high school. He obtained his undergraduate degree from Swarthmore College and later earned a PhD in biology from Rockefeller University in 1964, focusing his thesis on the study of viruses in animal cells. After joining the Salk Institute in San Diego and marrying Huang, he relocated to MIT in 1982, where he established the Whitehead Institute.
Baltimore began his research studying viruses such as polio and mengovirus, which replicate by creating RNA copies of the RNA genomes. However, he later shifted his focus to retroviruses, which use enzymes to create DNA copies of viral RNA. His discovery of this viral enzyme, now known as reverse transcriptase, was a monumental breakthrough. Prior to this, scientists believed that the flow of information went from DNA to RNA to protein synthesis. Baltimore's discovery showed that this process could be reversed, paving the way for researchers to use disabled retroviruses to insert genes into human DNA, thus enabling the correction of genetic diseases.
Controversial Episode
Despite his stellar reputation in the scientific community, Baltimore found himself embroiled in a scientific fraud investigation in the late 1980s. The controversy, often referred to as "the Baltimore affair", didn't involve any allegations of scientific misconduct against Baltimore. However, his co-authorship of the disputed study and his staunch defense of his colleague at MIT, Thereza Imanishi-Kari, against the fraud allegations put him in the center of the controversy.
The study in question involved the investigation of how the immune system restructures genes to create antibodies against new antigens. A postdoc in Imanishi-Kari's lab alleged that she was unable to replicate some of the experiments described in the study and accused Imanishi-Kari of fabricating the data. Despite the allegations, Baltimore refused to retract the study, and the postdoc eventually withdrew her challenge. However, due to funding implications, the National Institutes of Health felt compelled to investigate, which led to congressional hearings on the matter.
The investigation spanned several years and involved detailed forensic analysis of Imanishi-Kari's lab notebooks. These events coincided with Baltimore's move to Rockefeller University to assume the presidency in 1989. When a preliminary report in 1991 found Imanishi-Kari guilty of falsifying and fabricating data, Baltimore apologized for not taking the initial allegations more seriously and resigned from his position at Rockefeller, returning to MIT. Although no criminal or civil charges were filed, in 1994 the NIH Office of Research Integrity declared Imanishi-Kari guilty of research misconduct on multiple counts and banned her from receiving federal grants for a decade. However, she appealed the decision and was fully exonerated in 1996.
Legacy and Impact
Despite the controversy, Baltimore continued to make significant contributions to science. He served as the president of Caltech the following year, but admitted that the controversy had taken a toll on him. Nevertheless, he continued his research on viral vectors and mammalian immune systems and called for a global ban on the use of genome-editing techniques to alter human DNA in 2015. Baltimore's scientific achievements are well-known, but he was also remembered for his diverse interests in music, art, wine, and food. His efforts to improve the human condition through his work are a testament to his impactful life.