Renowned cell biologist and Salk Institute researcher Dave Schubert, whose research helped identify chemicals that can slow the progression of Alzheimers and related diseases, died last week at a local hospital. He was 77.

The La Jolla resident had been undergoing tests since early July to diagnose a case of severe anemia, but he had continued to work in his lab at Salk. On Aug. 4, he was diagnosed with B cell lymphoma and hospitalized at UC San Diego Thornton Hospital, where he died just two days later on Aug. 6.

His sudden passing came as a shock to family and friends of the vital and active scientist who had been an Ironman triathlete and ultra-marathon runner in his earlier years, according to his wife of 32 years and research partner, Dr. Pamela Maher, who is a senior staff scientist at Salk.

Among his friends, they all thought hed be the last of the old guard to go, Maher said. People thought of him as a fighter, that hed battle it and overcome it. But it was too late.

Salk Institute researcher and professor David Schubert and his wife, Dr. Pamela Maher, who is a senior staff scientist at Salk.

(Courtesy of Salk Institute)

In his more than five decades of work at Salk, Schubert became known for the development of novel screening techniques that allowed his team to identify naturally occurring chemicals that can slow or prevent the neurological damage that occurs in neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimers disease.

We are deeply saddened by the news of Daves passing, Salk President Rusty Gage said in statement. He was one of the earliest graduate students at Salk and spent close to 55 years of his scientific career here. Dave will be greatly missed and we are forever thankful for his contributions to our research community.

Maher described her husband as a classic, old-school scientist with a reputation for integrity. He was driven by his passion for helping others, rather than a desire to seek out the largest research grants. Jan Lewerenz, a senior physician at Ulm University Hospital in Germany, and one of Schuberts former postdoctoral researchers, said she would always remember Schubert as one of the best human beings I had the privilege to know.

Without him, my life would have been different, Lewerenz said. Whenever I have to deal with slimeballs, I am reminded of his integrity and honesty. The world, now more than ever, is in desperate need of people like Dave. He will always be my role model for how to navigate the murky waters of academic research without selling ones soul.

Schubert was born in 1943 in Indianapolis and earned his bachelors degree in chemistry from Indiana University in 1965. He arrived at Salk later that year as a graduate student, while working on his doctorate in cell biology at UC San Diego. At Salk, Schubert started out in the lab of the late Salk professor and immunologist Melvin Cohn. From there, he moved to Paris to do his postdoctoral fellowship at the Pasteur Institute under the direction of Nobel laureate Franois Jacob. He returned to Salk in 1970 as a member of the faculty.

Schubert established the first neurobiology laboratory at Salk, where he developed and characterized a large number of nerve, glial and muscle cell lines that have served as the basis for numerous important discoveries by labs around the world. He also served as a professor and the head of Salks Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory until his passing. His diverse body of research included studying factors influencing the health and development of nerve and muscle cells, studies on neuroblastoma cancer and research on genetically modified crops, according to Salk officials.

In recent years at Salk, Schubert and Maher developed a novel screening technique to test for naturally occurring chemicals that can prevent the type of nerve cell death found in neuro-degenerative diseases. This led to the establishment of the first medicinal chemistry lab at Salk where he worked to make derivatives of the neuro-protective natural products that have improved medicinal, chemical and pharmacological properties over the parent compounds.

One such natural product is fisetin, which can be found in strawberries. It prevents memory and learning deficits in mouse models of Parkinsons and Alzheimers diseases. A synthetic derivative of fisetin is now undergoing the studies necessary for moving into clinical trials. Also, Schubert and Maher found that a synthetic derivative of the curry spice curcumin, called J147, improves behavioral and pathological symptoms associated with Alzheimers, traumatic brain injury and stroke. This compound is currently in a phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of Alzheimers.

Maher said their Alzheimers derivitive research was an unusual project for Salk, in that all of its development, from the earliest ideas to the trial phase, was conducted in-house. Usually, the research gets passed on to drug development firms much earlier.

He will be disappointed that he doesnt get to see what happens, but getting it that far was really quite a feather in his cap, Maher said.

Besides his research work, Schubert also served as a member of the County of San Diego Scientific Advisory Board and the National Water Reuse Panel for San Diego County. He was also an environmental justice advocate who wrote frequent op-ed pieces on the topic for The San Diego Union-Tribune and most recently had reached out to the city of San Diego and San Diego Unified School District to encourage them to stop using Roundup weed-killer because of its possible impact on the environment.

Schubert is survived by Maher, his son Bruno Schubert and three grandchildren. There are no memorial services planned at this time. Maher said her husband will be cremated and his ashes will be scattered under his favorite plants in their garden.

This is what he told people that he wanted, Maher said. Dave loved the garden and spent a lot of time working in it as well as enjoying it. As with the science, he was very passionate about the garden and actually was breeding plants that are endangered in the wild, to help keep them going.

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Dave Schubert, Salk scientist who aimed to unlock mysteries of human body, dies at 77 - The San Diego Union-Tribune