Emil Raphael Unanue (September 13, 1934 – December 16, 2022) was a Cuban-American
immunologist and Paul & Ellen Lacy Professor Emeritus at
Washington University School of Medicine
Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) is the medical school of Washington University in St. Louis in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine has 1,260 students, 604 of which are pursuing a medical degree with ...
. He is a member of the
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
, the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
and the
Institute of Medicine
The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, E ...
. He previously served as chair of the National Academy of Sciences Section of Microbiology and Immunology.
Area of expertise
Unanue initiated a field of study known as
antigen presentation
Antigen presentation is a vital immune process that is essential for T cell immune response triggering. Because T cells recognize only fragmented antigens displayed on cell surfaces, antigen processing must occur before the antigen fragment, n ...
; it is critical to the development of
vaccines
A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity
The adaptive immune system, also known as the acquired immune system, is a subsystem of the immune system that is composed of specialized, systemic cells and pro ...
and underlies an understanding of microbial immunity and
autoimmune diseases
An autoimmune disease is a condition arising from an abnormal immune response to a functioning body part. At least 80 types of autoimmune diseases have been identified, with some evidence suggesting that there may be more than 100 types. Nearly a ...
.
In the late 1970s, it was recognized that T lymphocytes could not recognize
antigen
In immunology, an antigen (Ag) is a molecule or molecular structure or any foreign particulate matter or a pollen grain that can bind to a specific antibody or T-cell receptor. The presence of antigens in the body may trigger an immune response. ...
directly and instead required an interaction with another specialized cell known as the
Antigen-presenting cell.
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
winners,
Rolf Zinkernagel
Rolf Martin Zinkernagel (born 6 January 1944) is Professor of Experimental Immunology at the University of Zurich. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1996 for the discovery of how the immune system recognizes virus-infe ...
and
Peter C. Doherty
Peter Charles Doherty (born 15 October 1940) is an Australian immunologist and Nobel laureate. He received the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1995, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with Rolf M. Zinkerna ...
showed that this recognition also required the antigen-presenting cell to be from the same genetic background as the T-cell. That observation, called
MHC restriction, led to a conundrum; namely, that the ability of a T cell to recognize foreign antigen also required that it recognize "self"
With
Paul M. Allen, the Robert L. Kroc Professor at
Washington University School of Medicine
Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) is the medical school of Washington University in St. Louis in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine has 1,260 students, 604 of which are pursuing a medical degree with ...
, Unanue discovered that peptides from foreign antigens were bound to a group of molecules known as the
major histocompatibility complex
The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is a large locus on vertebrate DNA containing a set of closely linked polymorphic genes that code for cell surface proteins essential for the adaptive immune system. These cell surface proteins are calle ...
(MHC). This peptide-MHC complex was shown to be recognized by T cells. Although the latter hypothesis was initially greeted with intense skepticism, a large body of work, generated over the last two decades, has confirmed its validity.
Education and early career
Emil Unanue received his doctorate from the
University of Havana
The University of Havana or (UH, ''Universidad de La Habana'') is a university located in the Vedado district of Havana, the capital of the Republic of Cuba. Founded on January 5, 1728, the university is the oldest in Cuba, and one of the first ...
(
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
) in 1960. He then immigrated to the United States and studied briefly at the
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...
. Following that experience, Unanue was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation, now
The Scripps Research Institute
Scripps Research, previously known as The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), is a nonprofit American medical research facility that focuses on research and education in the biomedical sciences. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the institu ...
in
La Jolla
La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood within the city of San Diego, California, United States, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781.
La Jolla is surrounded on ...
, California. With his mentor, Dr.
Frank J. Dixon, he made a series of contributions to the field of renal pathophysiology by examining the immune basis of
glomerulonephritis
Glomerulonephritis (GN) is a term used to refer to several kidney diseases (usually affecting both kidneys). Many of the diseases are characterised by inflammation either of the glomeruli or of the small blood vessels in the kidneys, hence the ...
. Unanue then joined the group headed by Dr.
Brigitte Askonas
Brigitte Alice Askonas (1 April 1923 – 9 January 2013) was a British immunologist and a visiting professor at Imperial College London from 1995.
Education
Brigitte Askonas was born to Czechoslovak parents, Jewish converts to Catholicism, wh ...
at the
National Institute for Medical Research
The National Institute for Medical Research (commonly abbreviated to NIMR), was a medical research institute based in Mill Hill, on the outskirts of north London, England. It was funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC);
In 2016, the NIMR b ...
at
Mill Hill
Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18, ...
in London.
Together, Unanue & Askonas made the seminal observation that
macrophages
Macrophages (abbreviated as M φ, MΦ or MP) ( el, large eaters, from Greek ''μακρός'' (') = large, ''φαγεῖν'' (') = to eat) are a type of white blood cell of the immune system that engulfs and digests pathogens, such as cancer ce ...
did not completely catabolize antigens, foreshadowing development of the field of
antigen processing Antigen processing, or the cytosolic pathway, is an immunological process that prepares antigens for presentation to special cells of the immune system called T lymphocytes. It is considered to be a stage of antigen presentation pathways. This pro ...
and presentation. In 1970, Unanue was given an appointment in the Department of Pathology at
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...
, where he quickly rose through the academic ranks to become the Mallinckrodt Professor of Immunopathology in 1974.
While at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, he and his colleagues made observations in the areas of immunoglobulin capping on
B cells
B cells, also known as B lymphocytes, are a type of white blood cell of the lymphocyte subtype. They function in the humoral immunity component of the adaptive immune system. B cells produce antibody molecules which may be either secreted or ...
and host defenses to bacteria such as
Listeria monocytogenes
''Listeria monocytogenes'' is the species of pathogenic bacteria that causes the infection listeriosis. It is a facultative anaerobic bacterium, capable of surviving in the presence or absence of oxygen. It can grow and reproduce inside the host' ...
. That work culminated in the conclusion that MHC molecules mediate the display of processed peptides to T cells.
Work at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri
From 1985 to 2006, Unanue was the chairman of pathology and immunology and Mallinckrodt Professor at
Washington University School of Medicine
Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) is the medical school of Washington University in St. Louis in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine has 1,260 students, 604 of which are pursuing a medical degree with ...
. He was preceded in that position by Dr.
Paul Eston Lacy, and succeeded by Dr.
Herbert "Skip" Virgin. Unanue's research focused on the molecular mechanisms of antigen processing, the immunological basis of autoimmune
diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...
, and immune responses to intracellular bacteria.
Illness and death
Unanue developed a malignant brain tumor,
glioblastoma multiforme
Glioblastoma, previously known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), is one of the most aggressive types of cancer that begin within the brain. Initially, signs and symptoms of glioblastoma are nonspecific. They may include headaches, personality cha ...
, in 2020.
[https://medicine.wustl.edu/news/obituary-emil-raphael-unanue-renowned-immunologist-88/] He died of that disease in 2022.
Awards
*1989 Cancer Research Institute
William B. Coley Award
The William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology is presented annually by the Cancer Research Institute, to scientists who have made outstanding achievements in the fields of basic and tumor immunology and whose w ...
*1995
Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research
*2000
Gairdner Foundation International Award
The Canada Gairdner International Award is given annually by the Gairdner Foundation at a special dinner to five individuals for outstanding discoveries or contributions to medical science. Receipt of the Gairdner is traditionally considered a ...
*2005
Robert Koch
Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch ( , ; 11 December 1843 – 27 May 1910) was a German physician and microbiologist. As the discoverer of the specific causative agents of deadly infectious diseases including tuberculosis, cholera (though the Vibrio ...
Gold Medal
*2014
References
External links
Lasker Award Recipients' Page*
ttp://hcr3.isiknowledge.com/author.cgi?&link1=Browse&link2=Results&id=176 ISI Highly Cited Researchersbr>
"From antigen processing to peptide-MHC binding", Nature Immunology - 7, 1277 - 1279 (2006)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unanue, Emil
1934 births
2022 deaths
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
University of Pittsburgh alumni
Harvard Medical School faculty
Washington University School of Medicine faculty
American people of Cuban descent
American immunologists
Scripps Research
University of Havana alumni
Recipients of the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research
Members of the National Academy of Medicine