Santosh Nigam, MD, PhD, DSc (h.c.)

August 24, 1942 (Kanpur, India) – October 2, 2007 (Berlin, Germany)
A founding member of the Eicosanoid Research Foundation and the International Conference on Bioactive Lipids in Cancer, Inflammation and Related Diseases, Dr. Nigam had received degrees in Food Technology (Dipl.-Ing.) and in Chemistry and Biochemistry (Dipl. Chem. &Biochem.) from the Technical University Berlin (1966 –74) and a degree in Medicine and his MD from the Free University Berlin. He did doctoral research in Fritz Haber Institute of the Max-Planck Society and Hahn Meitner Institute for Nuclear Research, Berlin and received PhD in Radiation Biology (1976) from the Technical Univ. Berlin. Following post-doctoral and sabbatical scientific work in Brunel University of West London, Uxbridge, UK and Harvard University, Boston, MA, he joined 1977 the Dept. of Clinical Pharmacology of Free University Medical Centre Berlin as Senior Researcher and became 1980 head of the Experimental Endocrinology and GC-MS Centre in the Dept. of Gynecology and Obstetrics. There he rose to Head of the Eicosanoid- & Lipid Research Division (1982) and Centre for Experimental Gynecology & Breast Research (2001). He was 1982-84 Regional Director of National Foundation for Cancer Research, Bethesda, MD and 1984-94 Project Director of the Association for Int. Cancer Research, UK. Dr. Nigam was the first to give 1994 the “Lategan Prestige Lecture” in post-apartheid Univ. of Orange Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. He was awarded 1996 Academic Medal by the University in recognition of his contribution to the South African Fryer Oil Initiative, which led directly to strict legislation prohibiting the use of abused fats and oils. The same University awarded him 1999 Honoris causa (DSc. Hon.). Dr. Nigam was 1989 Visiting Scientist in Dept. of Hematology at Brigham & Women´s Hospital, Boston, MA, Visiting Professor in Dept. of Biochemistry at Brunel University of West London, Uxbridge, UK (1990-1993), Visiting Professor in Radiation Oncology at Wayne State University, Detroit, MI (1993 – 1999), Visiting Professor in Dept. of Veterinary Science at the Penn. State University, PA (1995 – 2001) and Extraordinary Professor in the Dept. of Microbiology and Biochemistry at the University of Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa (1996 – ). Dr. Nigam´s research interests were in studying the role of eicosanoids in breast and cervix cancer and the regulation of 12/15-lipoxygenase enzymes. His group described a cascade of novel potent fungal eicosanoids, called 3-OH-eicosanoids”and characterized a novel enzyme “Hepoxilin A3 Synthase” which plays a crucial role in diabetes. Since 2004 he had been an active member of the Priority Program “Fungal Infection” of the “Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)”. Dr. Nigam authored more than 120 research publications and editor of 14 books. He was a member on the editorial boards of several scientific journals. He also servered as a member on several research boards in various European countries. He was cofounder of the Free Radical Research Association (1975), presently known as “Society for Free Radical Research (SFRR)”, “Foundation for Asthma Research, Berlin” (1978) and “Free Radicals in Medicine” (1988). Dr. Nigam was the initiator of several cyclic conferences, 1989 the “International Conference on Eicosanoids and Other Bioactive Lipids in Cancer, Inflammation and Related Diseases” together with Dr. Honn and Dr. Marnett, 1999 the “International. Conference on Phospholipase A2” with Dr. Dennis, and 2000 the “International. Conference on Nonmammalian Eicosanoids and Other Bioactive Lipids” together with Dr. Gerwick (La Jolla, CA), Dr. Brash (Nashville, TN) and Dr. Kock (Bloemfontein, South Africa). Moreover, Dr. Nigam had been engaged for more than a decade in supporting developing countries in Africa and Asia.