Obituary: Professor Fereydoun Malekzadeh (1933-2012)

We were greatly saddened to hear the news of Professor Fereydoun Malekzadeh's death at age of 79 in September 9, 2012. Professor Malekzadeh was a distinguished and highly respected Iranian Microbiologist and a member of the editorial board of the Iranian Biomedical Journal since October 1997. He was born in 1933 in city of Tabriz in Province of Azarbaijan, Iran. After graduated from high school, he moved to Tehran and attended at Tehran University and obtained his BS in Biology in 1956 and subsequently his MSc degree in Mycology in 1959. Professor Malekzadeh received “Fulbright Scholarship” and obtained his Ph.D. degree in Bacteriology in 1961 from Louisiana State University. He returned home and since then taught microbiology in Biology Department of Faculty of Science, in Tehran University and later in Azad University. His contribution to microbiology was immense and he played a major role in establishing the Doctoral degree in the Microbiology Department of Faculty of Science in Tehran University and in Azad University. He was also a key funder of Iranian Society for Biology and a member of "American Society for Microbiology". Dr. Malekzadeh wrote several reference books, such as Introduction to Microbiology, Medical Microbiology, Infectious Diseases, etc., and also authored several papers in international peer-reviewed journals. His many academic awards included two best scientific books of the year, Botany and Introduction to Microbiology co-authored with Dr. Moghaddam and Dr. Shahamat, respectively. He also received "UNESCO Science Prize" in 1999, and "International Kharazmi Award" for discovering two new strains of bacteria, "Cellulomonas Persia" and "Cellulomonas iranesis" that have been established in Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology and deposited in ATCC. Dr. Malekzadeh was visiting professor at University of Illinois, State University of Arizona, University of Göttingen, University of Alberta and Institute of Marine Biotechnology in University of Maryland. Dr. Malekzadeh loved to work at the bench and continued to do so long after his official retirement. He was extraordinarily hard-working, and held very high standards not only in his work but also in his personal life. He loved interacting with young people. He also spotted talent, and went to extraordinary lengths to promote young, talented scientists. Professor Malekzadeh was diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease in 2006, which caused deterioration in his health over a long period of time. He demonstrated great courage, determination and dignity during this very difficult time, seeming more concerned about others than about himself. He showed clearly strength of character during his illness. He is survived by his wife and two daughters, Dr. Shirin and Katayoun Malekzadeh.