Jan Moor-Jankowski

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Jan Moor-Jankowski (February 5, 1924 – August 27, 2005) was a

primatologist and a fighter for Polish independence against Nazi Germany. Dr. Moor-Jankowski was Director of the Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates (LEMSIP) which he founded in 1965, the Director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Hematology of Primate Apes, and the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Medical Primatology
.

Moor-Jankowski was the author and editor of many books, monographs and periodicals, and more than 200 papers on

hemophilia, blood groups, immunology and primate medical experimentation
.

Early life

Moor-Jankowski was born in

concert pianist. When his mother's cousin developed cancer, at the age of five, Moor-Jankowski decided that he wanted to be a research physician
in order to find a cure.

When

high school diploma
without official government recognition.

When his father disappeared in 1942, Moor-Jankowski joined the Polish Resistance. He would later write that he wanted something of himself to carry on, and so he fathered a son, Tadeusz, who was born in 1942. He saw the child once, when he was two weeks old, but did not see him again for 35 years.

Moor-Jankowski was fighting in

Warsaw uprising. He was injured by an explosive bullet in his knee, and he was forced to move from hospital to hospital, pretending to be a German officer in order to survive. Eventually, his impersonation was discovered, and he was imprisoned by the Germans, and then later by the Soviets. He finally escaped to Switzerland
, where he earned a medical degree.

Career

Moor-Jankowski eventually moved to the United States, where he worked mainly at a

chimpanzees for medical research, including work on the discovery of the first Hepatitis B vaccine and the development of techniques to freeze blood
for storage.

He was elected to the

French Academy of Medicine in 1995, replacing Linus Pauling
as the only American member.

The Journal of Medical Primatology

Moor-Jankowski founded the Journal of Medical Primatology.

The journal published a letter from an

United States Supreme Court
. He eventually prevailed in the state courts, in a decision which many hailed as a victory for letters to the editor against libel lawsuits. The litigation, however dragged on for years, while Immuno AG petitioned the court for a rehearing. One of the longest, most bitter and expensive libel suits finally ended when Immuno AG's petition was ultimately denied on June 3, 1991.

Recognition

Moor-Jankowski was presented with the Trumpeldor medal by the

Ordre National du Mérite for resistance activity in World War II
and for scientific achievements.

See also

External links

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