Description
Papers of Nathan Oram Kaplan, university administrator and eminent biochemist affiliated with Brandeis University, where he
developed that university's graduate program in biology during the late 1950s and early 1960s, and subsequently with the University
of California, San Diego, where he served as a member of the chemistry department and, after 1980, as associate director of
the UCSD Cancer Center. After 1970, Kaplan's research was primarily focused on chemotherapy, particularly the relationship
between different cancers and the blood levels of lactate dehydrogenase; the cultivation of nude mice; and human interferon.
Kaplan's papers contain correspondence, photographs, subject files, manuscripts, and reprints covering the years 1943-1986.
The bulk of the collection documents Kaplan's affiliations with Brandeis University and UCSD. However, the collection contains
a small amount of materials documenting research activities prior to his appointment at Brandeis and a larger amount documenting
his extra-mural professional activities.
Background
Nathan Oram Kaplan was born in New York City on June 25, 1917. He earned his B.A. in chemistry at UCLA in 1939 and his Ph.D.
in biochemistry at UCB in 1943. His career as a biochemist focused on enzymology and chemotherapy. He was active in research
and academic administration, first at Brandeis University and then at UCSD. He died in San Diego on April 15, 1986.