Julian Fleischman, an associate professor emeritus of molecular microbiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, died Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025, at his home in Sharon, Mass., from complications following a fall. He was 91.
“Julian made significant contributions to our understanding of the structure and assembly of immunoglobulins during his time in the department,” said Sean Whelan, head of the Department of Molecular Microbiology and the Marvin A. Brennecke Distinguished Professor of Microbiology at WashU Medicine. “He was also an active educator of graduate and medical students.”
Fleischman joined WashU Medicine in 1964 as a recent PhD whose resume included work in the laboratories of three Nobel laureates.
Born in Philadelphia in 1933, he graduated from the Fieldston School in New York, earned a bachelor’s degree from Yale University in 1955 and continued his studies at Harvard University. At Harvard, he became the first biochemistry graduate student of James D. Watson, who, along with Francis Crick, had recently published a paper proposing the double-helix structure of DNA. Watson received a Nobel Prize in 1962.
Fleischman earned his doctorate from Harvard in 1959 and then worked in the laboratory of Rodney Porter at St. Mary’s Hospital in London. Porter, now considered the founder of modern immunochemistry, would later receive a Nobel Prize based on research using antibodies that Fleischman brought to his lab from the United States.
After his work in Porter’s lab, Fleischman spent a year at the Pasteur Institute in Paris with Francois Jacob, also a Nobel Prize winner, followed by a year at the Weizmann Institute in Israel, before joining WashU Medicine in 1964.
During his 34-year tenure at the university, he taught immunology to thousands of medical students. He also earned an Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award. He retired in 1998 but remained active in the molecular microbiology department as long as his health permitted.
He is survived by his partner, Carol Warner; his sister, Naomi Towvim; and several nephews. In lieu of flowers, his family suggests a donation to the Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, Mo., 63110.
Originally published on the WashU Medicine website