Hungarian Agricultural Research, 2009 (XVIII/1-4)
2009-03-01 / 1. szám
0085716 OMgKDK Periodika & Events • News & Events • News <6 Events • News <6 Events • News <6 Events In Memoriam György P. Rédei (1921-2008) György P. Rédei, the famous professor of genetics and leading scientist of the University of Missouri passed away at the age of 87 on 10th November, 2008 in Nashville, Tennessee. Although he often faced difficulties in his life, he succeeded in forming a scientific carreer and was recognized as a significant, internationally known scientist. He graduated as an agricultural engineer in Magyaróvár, Hungary in 1949 and he received a Ph.D. degree in genetics in 1955. He started to work at the Agricultural Research Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 1956. Because of the political disturbances in Hungary at that time, he and his wife Magdolna emigrated to the USA and settled in Columbia in 1957. He became affiliated with the University of Missouri that year. During the period of 1957 to 1991 he was active at the University of Missouri first as an assistant lecturer, then as an assistant professor and as a professor, respectively. He remained at the University of Missouri until his retirement in 1991 and continued working as a professor emeritus. All the time of his scientific activity in Missouri, he was engaged in researching and elaborating methods to research the genetics and biology of Arabidopsis. He was the only person in the USA to work with this plant for 20 years. Today, Arabidopsis is the model organism for research in plant biology. As of 2008, about 16,000 laboratories worldwide are pursuing researches with Arabidopsis by using his methods. He was a visiting professor at the Max- Planck-Institute in Cologne, Germany, and he taught for years at the Eötvös Loránd University of Basic Sciences in Budapest, Hungary. While working in Europe, he contributed to the development of certain research and teaching programmes in a significant way. The Hungarian Academy of Sciences offered him a membership in 1990. He published approximately 250 papers, notes, book chapters and books. His publications appeared in prestigious journals such as: Genetics, Science, Nature, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, Cell EMBO Journal, Genes and Development, Molecular and General Genetics, Annual Review of Genetics and others. Considering the above-mentioned list, we may be proud that our periodical also published one of his articles in 1982. He was plant biologist, professor and author of Hungarian origin, and remained a patriot during his whole life. He was enthusiastic about enhancing the Hungarian education and agricultural research. In his home and laboratory in Curtis Hall, he welcomed a great number of senior and junior research workers (me as well, as a junior one) from Hungary. Each of them enjoyed his kind hospitality, support and friendship. George Rédei was an outstanding scientist, a really good teacher, and a warm-hearted MAN. Peace to his memory, God rest his soul in peace. On part of the Editorial Board of Cereal Research Communications (János Pauk, Editor-in-Chief, Júlia Mesterházy Scholz and Elizabeth Búza Technical Editors) Zoltán Kertész retired Editor-in-Chief “Reprinted from Cereal Research Communications Vol. 37/1”