Gunter B. Kohlhaw

May 5, 1931 - October 8, 2026

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Gunter B. Kohlhaw, Professor Emeritus at Purdue University, was born May 5, 1931, in the city of Elbing in what was then the Province of East Prussia in Germany. He attended school in his home- town and, after war-caused relocation in 1945, in the Province of Schleswig-Holstein. After graduating with honors from high school in 1951, he was accepted into a management training program at the Bayer Pharmaceutical Company headquarters in Leverkusen in western Germany. While he did complete the program, his experience at Bayer had kindled an interest in the natural sciences, and so he subsequently enrolled in the Pharmacy curriculum of Freiburg University in southern Germany, graduating with the equivalent of a Master’s degree in Pharmacy in 1959. He then became a graduate student at the university’s Institute of Biochemistry, earning his PhD degree, summa cum laude, in 1962. He spent his first two post-doctoral years as a Research and Teaching ·-Assistant in Biochemistry at Freiburg University Medical School. In 1964, he was awarded a NATO Fellowship for further post-doctoral work at the Department of Biological Sciences of Purdue University. In 1966, he accepted an offer to join Purdue’s Department of Biochemistry, College of Agriculture, as Assistant Professor, moving through the ranks to Full Professor within the next seven years. On October 24, 1972, both he and his wife became naturalized United States citizens. At Purdue, Professor Kohlhaw conducted a vigorous research program focusing on enzyme regulation and eukaryotic gene expression and taught courses at all levels. Between 1983 and 1993, he administered the Departmental Undergraduate Program. From 1994 to 1998, he also served as Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry at the Indiana University Medical School. He became Professor Emeritus in 1999. Professor Kohlhaw was an elected member of the German Society for Physiological Chemistry and a member of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Other honors include his being elected as a Fellow of the Advanced Studies Foundation of the German People (“Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes”) and service in Study Sections of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

Professor Kohlhaw married his beloved wife Ellen (nee Bull) in 1959, Ellen preceded him in death
on March 24, 2018. He is survived by his sister, Rita Holler; niece, Heike Holler; grandniece, Mareike Holler; and sister-in-law, Brigitte Bull, all residing in Germany. Professor Kohlhaw and his wife were members of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Lafayette since 1964. He was also active in his local Northwestern Heights Neighborhood Association and was a long-time supporter of the Tree Program of the City of West Lafayette by the late Helen Lillich.

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Zufällig dachte ich heute (5. Nov. 2026) an meinen geschätzten Kollegen Prof. Gunter Kohlhaw, mit dem ich vor allem um die Jahrtausendwende intensiven Kontakt hatte, damals per Telefon und FAX. Mit großer Trauer las ich im Internet von seinem kürzlichen Tod im Oktober. Prof. Kohlhaw (wir blieben immer beim formalen „Sie“) half mir damals, die Leucin-, Isoleucin- und Valin-Biosynthese in Hefe besser zu verstehen, was extrem wichtig war für unsere Entdeckung der Rolle des mitochondrialen ABC Transporters Atm1 und der mitochondrialen ISC Maschinerie bei der zellulären Eisen-Schwefel-Proteinbiogenese. Seine Expertise und Hilfsbereitschaft und Freude der Diskussion war unschätzbar. Unsere gemeinsamen Gespräche zur von uns gefundenen Kompartimentierung der Enzyme „seines“ Leucin-Isoleucin-Valins Reaktionsweges fanden Eingang in seinen ausgezeichneten MMBR Review von 2003, zu dem ich ihn ein wenig überreden musste, war er doch schon im Ruhestand. Immer wieder hatten wir danach immer wieder losen telefonischen Kontakt und ich berichtete über unsere weitere Forschung, die er auch verfolgte. Mit Schmerz, aber auch großer Demut berichtete er von der Krankheit seiner geliebten Frau. Leider haben wir uns nie persönlich kennen lernen dürfen, was ich sehr bedaure. Ich werde Prof. Kohlhaw immer in bester Erinnerung behalten, als geschätzten, wissensbegierigen und hilfreichen Kollegen und als einen wunderbaren Menschen. Ruhe in Frieden. Roland Lill, Marburg Deutschland Coincidentally, today (Nov. 5, 2026) I found myself thinking of my esteemed colleague Prof. Gunter Kohlhaw, with whom I was in close contact, especially around the turn of the millennium—back then via phone and fax. It was with great sadness to read online about his recent passing in October. In the days of our intense contact, Prof. Kohlhaw (we always stayed with the formal “Sie” =you) helped me better understand the leucine, isoleucine, and valine biosynthesis pathway in yeast, which was extremely important for our discovery of the role of the mitochondrial ABC transporter Atm1 and the mitochondrial ISC machinery in cellular iron-sulfur protein biogenesis. His expertise, willingness to help, and enthusiasm for discussion were invaluable. Our joint discussions regarding our findings on the compartmentalization of the enzymes of “his” leucine-isoleucine-valine pathway were included in his excellent 2003 MMBR review, though I had to persuade him a bit to contribute, as he was already retired. We remained in regular yet loose contact by phone afterwards, and I kept him updated on our ongoing research, which he followed closely. With sorrow, but also great humility, he sometimes spoke of his beloved wife’s illness. Unfortunately, we never had the opportunity to meet in person, which I deeply regret. I will always cherish the memory of Prof. Kohlhaw as a valued, inquisitive, and helpful colleague and as a wonderful person. May he rest in peace. Roland Lill, Marburg Germany

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