Hamburger, Robert N.

American pediatrician and professor of pediatric medicine. Hamburger received a B.A. from the University of North Carolina in 1947 and an M.D. from Yale University in 1951. In 1964, Hamburger was appointed associate professor of pediatrics in the UCSD School of Medicine, and, from 1964-1969, he served as the school's Assistant Dean for Faculty and Curriculum Affairs. In 1969, Hamburger was appointed head of the school's Pediatric Immunology and Allergy Division. His investigation of immunoglobin E (IgE) during the early 1970s resulted in the synthesis of immunoglobin E pentapeptide (HEPP), a peptide and allergy inhibitor. Optimism about the potential success of HEPP led to the formation of APCo (Allergy Peptide Co.) and Immunetech Research Partners to develop Hamburger's discoveries for the pharmaceutical market. Hamburger retired from UCSD in 1990 but has continued his research and development activities.

Emertius Professor of Pediatrics, UCSD School of Medicine.

BIOGRAPHY

Robert N. Hamburger was born in New York on January 26, 1923. He received his B.A. in zoology and chemistry in 1947 from the University of North Carolina and attended Yale University School of Medicine (1947-1951), where he conducted research on LE cells. Hamburger carried out his medical residency at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.Y., and Yale University School of Medicine. Between 1960 and 1963, as a Special Fellow of the National Institutes of Health, he studied molecular genetics and immunology in the UCSD Department of Biology. In 1964, he was appointed associate professor of pediatrics at the UCSD School of Medicine and served as its Assistant Dean for Faculty and Curriculum Affairs (1964-1969). In 1967, during a six-month semi-sabbatical at Guy's Hospital Medical School, London, he studied the development of immunologic systems in the human newborn. Hamburger was appointed head of the Pediatric Immunology and Allergy Division of the UCSD School of Medicine in 1969. Hamburger's laboratory research with immunoglobin E (IgE) during the early 1970s led to the synthesis of a peptide, human immunoglobin E pentapeptide (HEPP), that inhibited allergic reaction in a limited "in vivo" test. He published his findings in an article in SCIENCE (August 1, 1975) entitled "Peptide Inhibition of the Prausnitz-Kustner Reaction." The University of California obtained two patents for HEPP: "Polypeptide Agents for Blocking the Human Allergic Response" (1976) for the peptide, and "Method for Blocking Allergic Response" (1979) for a method of delivery.

In March of 1977, amid optimism over HEPP's potential as a cure for allergy sufferers, Syntex Corporation, a Palo Alto biotechnology firm, bought the rights and a two year research option to develop HEPP as a product. Syntex dropped the project after a year and a half when no suitable test animal could be found to replicate human response. In 1978, Hamburger entered into an option agreement with the University of California and formed APCo, Inc. (Allergy Peptide Company, Inc.), with the purpose of advancing his research through the first stages of FDA approval.

In 1981, Hamburger and UCSD doctors Richard O'Connor and Gary Hahn formed Immunetech Research Partners to finance further stages of the peptide research. This partnership purchased the assets of APCo, Inc., including all of its research materials and, signed a research and development agreement with Immunetech, Inc., a separate company formed with venture capitalist Ray McKewon of the Enterprise Management Company. Immunetech, Inc., then purchased both UC-owned patents and attempted to develop HEPP as a product but eventually dropped the project. Hamburger was the first executive vice president of Immunetech, Inc., and was involved in research and development until 1985.

Robert Hamburger retired from UCSD in 1990 as emeritus professor and continues to conduct private research and development activities.