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Editor's Corner
Antero G. So, M.D., Ph.D., 1932–2007
volume 6 | issue 4
April 2007A PDF is not yet available for this article.
Dr. Antero So, Professor of Medicine and of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine passed away on March 29, 2007. He is survived by his wife Sofia,his daughters Christine So of McLean, Virginia and Mary June So of Honolulu, Hawaii, his brother Keng Koc So of Miami and his granddaughter Zoû Gomez-So of McLean, Virginia.
Dr. So was born in Davao City, Philippines on Jan. 3, 1932. He obtained his M.D. from the University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines in 1956 and completed his clinical training in Internal Medicine at Cleveland Metropolitan General Hospital, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio. Because of his love for research, he entered graduate school in Biochemistry, obtaining a Ph.D. from the University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, followed by postdoctoral training at the Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Geneva, Switzerland He joined the faculty of the Departments of Medicine and Biochemistry, University of Miami, in 1968. Honors include a Helen Hay Whitney Foundation Fellowship (1966-1968), an American Heart Association Established Investigatorship (1969-1974) and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigatorship (1974-1981). In 2003 he received an award for Outstanding Cancer Research from the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami.
Dr. So was a pioneer in the field of Molecular Biology. His work on protein biosynthesis and RNA synthesis in the 1960s and 1970s contributed greatly to the understanding of these fundamental cellular processes. He is best known for his work on DNA replication, where he has made seminal contributions to the field. In 1976 he reported the discovery of DNA polymerase delta, the enzyme that is primarily responsible for replicating chromosomal DNA and that also participates in the repair of damaged DNA. He subsequently isolated a novel accessory protein for DNA polymerase delta that enabled the polymerase to synthesize DNA more efficiently. He identified this protein as the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), a protein subsequently found to be involved in numerous DNA transactions as well as in control of the cell cycle. Dr. So's work in this area contributed immensely to the understanding of the mechanism of DNA replication as well as the coordination of DNA replication with DNA repair and cell cycle progression, areas critical to our understanding of cancer development and the mechanism of action of effective cancer treatments. Dr. So was an outstanding physician-scientist who was a great role model for many students and colleagues. He was an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, a prestigious honor for physician-scientists in the United States.
Dr. So has mentored a large number of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, as well as clinical and research fellows in Hematology/Oncology. This includes Wafik El-Deiry, MD PhD, the Editor-in-Chief of Cancer Biology & Therapy, who was Dr. So's graduate student from 1982-1987. Dr. So has authored or co-authored numerous articles and book chapters and has served on the editorial boards of several important journals as well as NIH Study Sections. Beyond these academic accomplishments, Dr. So was a compassionate and caring physician, advisor and friend. Many individuals beyond the scope of his own laboratory group came to seek advice, recognizing his broad scientific knowledge, great imagination and excellent judgement and pragmatism. He cared deeply about the welfare of others and committed his life not only to the pursuit of knowledge but also to the betterment of self and society. He will be greatly missed by his family, colleagues and friends.
Donations in memory of Dr. So may be sent to the University of Miami Office of Medical Development, P,O. Box 016960 (R-100), Miami, FL 33101A PDF is not yet available for this article.