Remembering Our Friend Essie

In November 2014 we published a book entitled “Center of Excellence, A Tribute to Drs. Lisa Djavadi-Ohaniance and Fereydoun Djavadi, Founders of the Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Tehran.”

As the subtitle indicates, the book honors two exceptional biochemists who, together with a number of faculty members of the University of Tehran, established the Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics (IBB). Dr. Esmail Meisami (Essie) was one of the cofounders. The 54-page book with leather hard cover contains photographs, English text and Farsi text.

IBB is a graduate research and teaching entity of the University of Tehran that hired well-qualified scientists and staff and accepted excellent graduate students from across the country by means of entrance examinations and interviews. From 1975 through 1978, the institute organized three major symposia with renowned international authorities as speakers, with a number of Nobel laureates among them. Those symposia together with peer- reviewed papers published in first-rate international journals by IBB scientists, helped the institute to be highly recognized at the national and international levels. IBB established contact and collaboration with the best laboratories in the world, where the IBB graduates could easily be accepted for continued education and research. It is remarkable that this young institute withstood the onslaught of the revolution, and continues since its beginning nearly 40 years ago, to conduct research and train students.

The contributors to our book include IBB students, staff and faculty that we were able to contact. Several scientists who had close association with IBB also contributed to the book. Essie, one of the founding faculty members of the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology (DCMB) and IBB, was one of the contributors. Before his untimely death, Essie submitted a piece that briefly presents the history of the establishment of DCMB and IBB and describes his role in the creation of those fine teaching and research institutions (p. 27). The book also has a section on “In Memoriam” (p. 26) that remembers the colleagues that we lost along the way, including our dear friend Essie.

In preparing the book, we were fortunate to have Mona Meisami Reilly (Essie’s daughter) as our graphic artist. Her expert graphic design work and her skill in incorporating the photographs with English and Persian texts have created a fine book that is loved by all who have seen it. We are sure that Essie would be pleased at the publication of a collaborative book that also includes the talents of his lovely daughter.

Please click here if you would like to see the book:

Ali Estilai and Ellen Estilai