© 1999 American Heart Association, Inc.
In Memoriam |
Tribute to Werner Risau
December 18, 1953–December 13, 1998
From 1995 to 1998, Werner Risau was Chairman of the European Vascular Biology Association (EVBA), which for many years has been closely associated with Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. As the current officers of the EVBA board, we have had the privilege of working closely with Werner, both on scientific as well as administrative matters. In addition, we have collaborated extensively with Werner on various scientific projects.
Very early on in his brilliant career, it became clear that Werner had
some very strong (usually correct) ideas about the mechanisms of
angiogenesis, often in contradiction to established dogma. One of the
most notable was his insistence, shortly after the discovery of VEGF,
that bFGF is not the most important angiogenic factor and that it may
in fact only play a minor (if any) role in the endogenous
regulation of this process. Although the FGF saga continues despite a
large amount of negative data, it is fair to say that Werner's
intuition is proving to be correct. More recently, Werner insisted that
angiopoietin 1 is involved not only in regulating vessel wall assembly
but also in the process of capillary sprouting. Once again, his
intuition is proving to be correct. One of Werner's hallmarks was his
ability to conduct science in a collaborative manner, often involving
several investigators and laboratories to solve an important
problem. His dedication to deliver high-quality research has
been a consistent feature of his scientific career. Many
researchers, both established experts as well as young newcomers
to the