Zweifach, Benjamin W. (Benjamin William), 1910-1997

BIOGRAPHY

Born in New York City to Eastern European immigrants in 1911, Benjamin W. Zweifach received a B.S. degree in biology in 1931 from the College of the City of New York and a Ph.D. in cellular physiology from New York University Medical College in 1936. His first publications were some of the earliest micromanipulative studies of the capillary blood vessels in living tissue. Beginning with these studies, Zweifach devoted his career to the study of the smallest blood vessels in the circulation system.

Zweifach was an assistant professor and associate professor of physiology at Cornell Medical School from 1947-1952. He returned to New York University, serving as associate professor of biology and pathology until 1958 and then as professor of pathology until 1966. Having established himself as a leading researcher in the field of microcirculation, Zweifach decided to learn and use engineering methods to further his studies. He went to the California Institute of Technology as a visiting professor in 1964, collaborating with engineers like Harold Wayland, Yuan-Cheng Fung, and Marcos Intaglietta. In 1966, he accepted an appointment as professor of bioengineering in the Department of Applied Mechanics and Engineering Sciences (AMES) at the University of California, San Diego. The Bioengineering Program began in 1966 as a joint enterprise between the School of Medicine and the general university campus. One of the earliest programs of its kind, the department continued to grow and receive international recognitition for its pioneering work in education and research. The program continued a close association with the School of Medicine after it became an independent department in 1994. Zweifach remained affiliated with the department for 28 years, guiding its success and working in the laboratory.

While Zweifach was an active member of many medical and engineering societies, he was especially involved in the Microcirculatory Society, an organization he had helped found in 1954. He served as its president in 1960 and 1979. During his second term in office, Zweifach assisted in the organization of the Second World Congress for Microcirculation, which was held at UCSD in conjunction with the 25th anniversary meeting of the Microcirculatory Society. Recognizing his role as a leader in microcirculation research, the Microcirculatory Society began presenting the Benjamin W. Zweifach Award annually in 1982.

Benjamin Zweifach died in 1997.

From the guide to the Benjamin Zweifach Papers, 1932-1997, (Mandeville Special Collections Library, UCSD)