In Memoriam Bernard Agranoff | Neuropsychopharmacology

Bernard W. Agranoff, Fellow Emeritus of ACNP died on October 21, 2022, at the age of 96. ‘Bernie’ was accepted into ACNP in 1968 and served on the Education and Training-, Program and

Scientific Communications-, Credentials- and Constitution and Rules Committees between 1989 and 2001. Bernie received his BS in Chemistry from the University of Michigan and an MD degree

from Wayne State University. Following post-doctoral studies at MIT and NIH, in 1961 Bernie moved to the University of Michigan where he was appointed to the faculty in the Department of

Biological Chemistry and as a member of the newly formed Mental Health Research Institute (MHRI). Bernie was a giant in the field of neuroscience and made numerous seminal discoveries. In

the mid-1960s, he was the first to demonstrate that protein synthesis was a prerequisite for the formation of long-term memory in goldfish. His ground-breaking studies, which were featured

in an article in Scientific American and reprinted 100,000 times, was the stimulus for several prominent neuroscientists to enter the field. Bernie considered that neuroplasticity was

essential for learning and memory and subsequently pioneered an optic nerve regeneration model to identify the biochemical mechanisms underlying the brain’s capacity to remodel itself. In

addition, Bernie had a long-standing interest in the role played by inositol lipids in cell signaling events within the nervous system. He was the first to identify cytidine

diphosphodiacylglycerol as a key precursor in the synthesis of phosphatidylinositol, more than two decades before the importance of inositol lipids in cell signaling in the brain, and its

modulation by psychotherapeutic agents, was fully appreciated. Bernie also foresaw the importance of human brain imaging in understanding the etiology underlying neuropsychiatric disorders

and he played a seminal role in the establishment of a PET facility at the University of Michigan. Bernie exceled as an Administrator. He served as Director of the MHRI for 12 years during

which time, he recruited several faculty members into the Institute, moving it squarely towards neuroscience and focusing on the then new molecular and genetic approaches to the study of the

brain. He created a vibrant and highly collaborative scientific community that has remained at the core of the current Michigan Neuroscience Institute. Bernie received many accolades for

his research including election to the National Academy of Medicine and to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He was past President of the American- and International Societies for

Neurochemistry and he also served on the Society for Neuroscience Council. Bernie was a great disseminator of scientific knowledge and was one of the founding editors of the classic

textbook, Basic Neurochemistry, now in its 50th year. One of Bernie’s major legacies is undoubtedly the number of graduate students and post-doctoral fellows (60+) who trained in his

laboratory. His trainees and many colleagues will remember Bernie for his outstanding intellect, his friendship, his wonderful sense of humor and the unforgettable culinary adventures

provided by his wife, the late Ricky Agranoff, an accomplished and talented chef. Bernie is survived by his two sons, William and Adam and their families. He will be greatly missed by all.

AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * Department of Psychiatry and Michigan Neuroscience Institute, University of Michigan, Detroit, MI, USA Huda Akil * Department of Pharmacology

and Michigan Neuroscience Institute, University of Michigan, Detroit, MI, USA Stephen K. Fisher Authors * Huda Akil View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed 

Google Scholar * Stephen K. Fisher View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar CORRESPONDING AUTHOR Correspondence to Huda Akil. RIGHTS AND

PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Akil, H., Fisher, S.K. In Memoriam Bernard Agranoff. _Neuropsychopharmacol._ 48, 577 (2023).

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-022-01516-w Download citation * Received: 28 November 2022 * Accepted: 28 November 2022 * Published: 08 December 2022 * Issue Date: February 2023 * DOI:

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