U of C Researcher Dies Of Plague Infection
By Staff in News on Sep 20, 2009 8:30PM
Professor Malcolm J. Casadaban, a 60-year-old genetics researcher at the University of Chicago, died on Sept. 13 at the University of Chicago Medical Center’s Bernard Mitchell Hospital. Casadaban was studying the genetics of the plague bacteria and officials think his infection may stem from his research. The U of C Medical Center said in a statement that Casadaban’s autopsy showed “no obvious cause of death” except for the presence of a weakened strain of the plague bacteria Yersinia pestis in his blood. Although there doesn’t appear to be a public health threat related to his death, U of C has taken precautions by notifying Casadaban’s close contacts and working closely with the city and state health departments and the CDC to investigate his death.
Dr. Kenneth Alexander, a virologist and chief of pediatric infections at the U of C Medical Center, told the Chicago Sun-Times that the form of bacteria that Casadaban was researching was not known to cause problems in healthy people, therefore special safety procedures weren’t required to handle it. Ordinarily, lab researchers who work with the bacteria wear gloves, a lab coat, and protective goggles. The bacteria is also disposed of in a biohazard bag and heated for at least two hours to prevent contamination. Casadaban’s family was shocked by his death, due to his health conscious nature and lack of chronic medical conditions. His daughter, Leigh, 21, spoke to the Sun-Times, “[He] tried so hard to be healthy. He hated smoking. He would never even let us watch a movie with smoking in it. He never used alcohol.”
Casadaban held degrees from Harvard, Stanford, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He grew up in Metairie, La., in a family of seven children, and had excelled in science from early on. “Words can't really describe what it's like to grow up with a genius,” Casadaban’s daughter, Brooke, 28, told the Sun-Times. A memorial was held on Wednesday.
Post by Anna Deem