New & Noteworthy

Fred Sherman, 1932-2013

September 18, 2013

Dr. Fred Sherman

The yeast community mourns the loss of Dr. Fred Sherman, who passed away on September 16, 2013. Dr. Sherman was a member of the faculty at the University of Rochester from 1961 until his death. He served as Chair of the Department of Biochemistry and then Chair of the combined Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics from 1982-1999. He performed ground-breaking research on the structure and regulation of genes and the effects of genetic mutations on proteins and was a proponent of the use of baker’s yeast as a genetic model system – a system that is now used at virtually all research centers worldwide, largely due to Dr. Sherman’s efforts and his teaching of many leaders in the field. The importance of his work has been recognized by his appointment to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences in 1985, by his receipt of an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Minnesota in 2002, by his election as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2006, and by his receipt of both the George W. Beadle Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Genetics Society of America in 2006. He was continuously funded by NIH for over 45 years.

Dr. Sherman’s family will receive friends on FRIDAY September 20, from 3-7 PM at Michael R. Yackiw Funeral Home, 1650 Empire Blvd., Webster. On SATURDAY, friends may join his family for a graveside service gathering at the Mt. Hope Ave. entrance of Mt. Hope Cemetery at 11 AM. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be directed to a fund to support an annual lecture in Fred’s memory. To donate please mail donations to: Fred Sherman Lecture of the University of Rochester, Box 712, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Ave., Rochester NY, 14642.

Plans for a future memorial service will be announced at a later date.

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