Hans Leo Kornberg, a biochemist at Boston University credited with discovering the glyoxylate cycle in microbes, died late last year (December 16). He was 91.
One of the first researchers to use radioactive carbon labeling to trace compounds through metabolic pathways, Kornberg coauthored more than 250 scientific publications over his 70-year career and was internationally recognized as an expert on carbon metabolism in microbes.
“Sir Hans will be greatly missed by his colleagues and students,” Boston University says in a statement. “Not just a brilliant biochemist and skilled educator, Dr. Kornberg always had an anecdote or witty story at hand. . . . [He’s] remembered for his generosity, incredible wit, many stories, endless puns, and cheerful nature.”
Born in Herford, Germany, in 1928, Kornberg emigrated to the UK in 1939 as a child refugee fleeing Nazi Germany. His parents died in the Holocaust, and he was raised by his uncle ...
