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O'Brien (John) Papers
MSS 0606
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Table of contents
Languages:
English
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla 92093-0175
Title: John S. O'Brien Papers
Creator:
O'Brien, John S.
Identifier/Call Number: MSS 0606
Physical Description:
5 Linear feet
(12 archives boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1968 - 2000
Abstract: Papers of John S. O'Brien, UC San Diego professor of neurosciences, internationally known for his discovery of the genetic
cause of Tay-Sachs disease and his development of screening tests for the disease.
Acquired 2003.
John O'Brien Papers. MSS 606. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.
John Smith O'Brien was born in 1934 in Rochester, New York. He attended Loyola University in Los Angeles, then earned his
M.S. in physiology (1958) and his M.D. (1960) at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. After graduating with academic honors,
he was a postdoctoral fellow at the City of Hope Medical Center at the Department of Biochemistry in Duarte, California. O'Brien
was recruited to the UC San Diego School of Medicine in 1968 after six years as a faculty member at the University of Southern
California.
His research was focused on the lipid metabolism of storage diseases which are characterized by the accumulation of waste
materials in cells preventing normal function and often leading to early death. In this family of diseases, he especially
investigated Tay-Sachs and Gaucher diseases. He discovered the primary enzyme deficiency of Tay-Sachs disease, a hereditary
disorder which leads to mental retardation, blindness, and death in infancy or early childhood. Once thought to primarily
affect people of Central and Eastern European Jewish ancestry, Tay-Sachs has now been documented in other populations. O'Brien
also discovered and described the structure, biological functions, and role in nervous system development of the saposin proteins
that stimulate regeneration and neuronal survival. His laboratory investigated possibilities for exploiting the saposin proteins
for treatment of pain associated with post-polio syndrome, Alzheimer's disease, and central nervous system disorders.
O'Brien was a founder of Myelos Neurosciences Corporation, which resulted from technology developed at UC San Diego with saposin
proteins. The company was started to expedite the development of treatments for neurodegenerative central nervous system disorders
based on research findings.
O'Brien was a member of the Society for Neuroscience, American Society for Neurochemistry, the American Association for the
Advancement of Science, and the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. He was honored with the 1995 Supelco
Award from the American Oil Chemists' Society for outstanding original research on fats, oils, lipid chemistry or biochemistry;
the Jacob Javits Neurosciences Investigator Award from the National Institutes of Health; the Foster Elting Bennett Lecturer
Award from the American Neurological Association; and the National Foundation of March of Dimes Award for Distinguished Voluntary
Leadership in the Fight Against Birth Defects. He also received the UC San Diego Chancellor's Associates Merit Award for Excellence
in Research, and a Distinguished Alumni Award from Loyola University.
In addition to his scientific and scholarly work, O'Brien was an accomplished painter and a jazz pianist. O'Brien died in
La Jolla in 2001.
Scope and Content of Collection
The papers of John S. O'Brien, UC San Diego professor of neurosciences, internationally known for his discovery of the genetic
cause of Tay-Sachs disease and his development of screening tests for the disease. The papers primarily document his research
on Tay-Sachs and similar hereditary diseases, many of which are characterized by the accumulation of waste materials in cells
preventing normal function and often leading to early death. The files comprise correspondence, writings, laboratory notes,
and newspaper clippings discussing his discovery of the genetic cause of Tay-Sachs disease. Also included are his writings
and administrative materials related to his later work on a family of proteins called saposins responsible for regeneration
and normal neuronal function of the central nervous system.
The papers are arranged in seven series: 1) BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIALS, 2) CORRESPONDENCE, 3) WRITINGS, 4) TEACHING, 5) TAY-SACHS,
6) RESEARCH, and 7) ORGANIZATIONS.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Metabolism, Inborn errors of
Tay-Sachs Disease
O'Brien, John S. -- Archives