The Legacy of a Citizen Scientist

A Scientific Legacy

It didn’t matter what boat we were sailing on with Chris. He was a consummate captain.

• —Ed Rall, NIH Record, May 21, 1996

Christian Anfinsen made a broad impact before his death in May 1995. He had mentored dozens of scientists who went on to their own distinguished careers, such as NIH director Donald Fredrickson. His research touched many fields; for example, he helped bring the concepts and techniques of protein chemistry to the study of antigens and antibodies, which has influenced the development of immunology.

Perhaps sailing is the best metaphor for Anfinsen’s approach to his work and life. Easy-going and optimistic on the water, Anfinsen was also known for his egalitarian treatment of everyone he met as “fellow crew members in the quest to understand nature.”
—Alan Schechter, Structural Biology, 2(8), August 1995

National Library of Medicine

In 1957, Anfinsen visited his former colleague Michael Sela at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, forging ties that lasted until the end of his life. Not only did he collaborate on chemistry and immunochemistry projects with Weizmann scientists, he formally converted to Judaism. In 1969, Anfinsen was made an Honorary Fellow of the Institute, and in 1995, a garden was dedicated to his memory.

National Library of Medicine