Kahn, Reuben L. (Reuben Leon), 1887-1979

Professor of bacteriology and serology at University of Michigan, and developer of the precipitation test for syphilis.

Dr. Reuben L. Kahn, professor of bacteriology and serology at the University of Michigan from 1928 to 1956, is best known for developing the Kahn precipitation test for syphilis. However, Kahn, who remained an active researcher until the age of 85, also carried out extensive research in the areas of tissue immunity and cancer irradiation. In addition to his contributions to the medical profession, Kahn was actively concerned with civil rights and human understanding.

Reuben Kahn was born in Lithuania in 1899 and immigrated to America with his family at age 12. He first became interested in medical research as an undergraduate at Valparaiso University. After graduating from here in 1909 he obtained an M.S. from Yale in 1913 and a D.Sc. from New York University in 1916. From 1917 to 1919 Kahn served in the Army Sanitary Corp.

In 1923, while working as an immunologist for the Michigan State Department of Health, Kahn developed the precipitation test for syphilis, which came to be known as the Kahn test. He was appointed director of laboratories of the University Hospitals at the University of Michigan in 1928, where he also became professor of bacteriology and, in 1957, professor of serology. During the 1930's Kahn began his work on tissue immunity, studying the capacity of tissue to localize foreign substances. In 1956, at the age of 69, he became involved in research on the subject of irradiation and tissue localization. This research continued into the 1970's, funded by the Atomic Energy Commission from 1957 to 1967, the American Cancer Society from 1967 to 1969, and the National Cancer Institute from 1969 to 1973. Although Kahn retired from the University of Michigan faculty in 1956, he,continued to carry out his research at Michigan until 1968 when he became professor of microbiology at Howard University, retiring in 1973.

Kahn and his wife, Dina, were active in the National Conference of Christians and Jews. Kahn's concern with racial equality was demonstrated as early as 1928, when he hired the first black to work in the University Medical Center laboratories. Kahn died in 1979.

The Kahn papers are likely to prove of most interest to biographers and to researchers interested in Kahn's experiments and his approach to research. The correspondence series provides insight into both Kahn's family life and his professional development. Speeches and papers in the collection give an indication of his personal philosophy. Materials relating to his research mostly concern his later studies on tissue immunity and irradiation. The Kahn papers are also significant as an indication of the potential contribution of older people to society.