OBITUARY Lyle T. Sinor, PhD: May 24, 1957-January 12, 2015
It was with great sadness that we learned of the passing of Lyle T. Sinor, PhD, on January 12, 2015. Lyle was a groundbreaking pioneer in blood bank testing. He was widely recognized for his success in applying solid-phase technology to immunohematology testing, a methodology he coinvented and patented while working toward his PhD in immunohematology at the University of Kansas Medical Center in the early 1980s. In 1986, after serving briefly as a Staff Research Scientist and Associate Director of Research at Community Blood Centers of Greater Kansas City, he was recruited to be Director of Research and Development for Immucor, Inc., then essentially a start-up company that had acquired the solid-phase patents. Over the next 24 years, as he rose to the position of Vice President of Research and Development at Immucor, Lyle intently focused on optimizing solid-phase technology for routine clinical use. He initially led the efforts to commercialize manual versions of the solid-phase method and later spearheaded development and commercialization of the first automated instrument for blood bank and transfusion service use, the ABS-2000. He and his team continually worked to refine solid-phase automation, eventually leading to the highly successful commercialization of the Galileo, Echo, and NEO instruments, which helped propel Immucor to the market leadership position it holds today. After Lyle left Immucor, he became Vice President of Research and Development at Transfusion & Transplantation Technologies, LLC (3Ti), in 2012, where he enthusiastically labored to develop the next generation of blood typing instruments until just before his death. During his career Lyle published more than 120 peer-reviewed manuscripts and abstracts and was issued six patents. His contributions to our field were acknowledged with the Jean Julliard Memorial Prize from the International Society of Blood Transfusion in 1987 and the
Morton Grove-Rasmussen Memorial Award by the AABB in 1999. Those who worked closely with Lyle recognized his keen eye, inquisitive nature, and knack for lateral thinking. After noting that some organic dyes strongly stained glass, Lyle intuited that other dyes might be found that bound both red blood cells and polystyrene. Following the dictum that “one fails forward toward success,” he embarked on an Edisonian quest to identify the best such dye, eventually finding one that made solid-phase testing possible. Because his inventor’s itch was constant, Lyle also maintained a laboratory in the basement of his house. In addition to performing immunohematology studies that couldn’t wait until he returned to work, his wide-ranging home investigations included the development of dehydrated beer and other eclectic projects. Despite his professional successes, Lyle was most respected for his gentle wit, unflappable nature, and humility. He considered all of his colleagues to be friends and forged a creative research group that nurtured young scientists and drove Immucor innovation for decades. Lyle’s laboratory obsessions were only exceeded by devotion to his family, including his loving wife Jessie; his children Meghan, Mollie, and Ben; and his twin brother Kyle; and commitment to his faith. The other passions in Lyle’s life included camping, fishing, tennis (which he played at a highly competitive level for more than 20 years), and the rock group Kansas, a favorite of his since he was a college student and for whom he once worked as a roadie. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author acknowledges the assistance of Sheilagh Barclay, Ralph Eatz, Ed Gallup, Jessie Sinor, Darryl Stone, Terry Walts, and Randy Young for help in preparing this memorial. CONFLICT OF INTEREST The author has disclosed no conflicts of interest.
John D. Roback, MD, PhD e-mail: [email protected] Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Emory University School of Medicine Atlanta, GA
doi:10.1111/trf.13094 C 2015 AABB V
TRANSFUSION 2015;55;1135 Volume 55, May 2015 TRANSFUSION 1135
It was with great sadness that we learned of the passing of Lyle T. Sinor, PhD, on January 12, 2015. Lyle was a groundbreaking pioneer in blood bank testing. He was widely recognized for his success in applying solid-phase technology to immunohematology testing, a methodology he coinvented and patented while working toward his PhD in immunohematology at the University of Kansas Medical Center in the early 1980s. In 1986, after serving briefly as a Staff Research Scientist and Associate Director of Research at Community Blood Centers of Greater Kansas City, he was recruited to be Director of Research and Development for Immucor, Inc., then essentially a start-up company that had acquired the solid-phase patents. Over the next 24 years, as he rose to the position of Vice President of Research and Development at Immucor, Lyle intently focused on optimizing solid-phase technology for routine clinical use. He initially led the efforts to commercialize manual versions of the solid-phase method and later spearheaded development and commercialization of the first automated instrument for blood bank and transfusion service use, the ABS-2000. He and his team continually worked to refine solid-phase automation, eventually leading to the highly successful commercialization of the Galileo, Echo, and NEO instruments, which helped propel Immucor to the market leadership position it holds today. After Lyle left Immucor, he became Vice President of Research and Development at Transfusion & Transplantation Technologies, LLC (3Ti), in 2012, where he enthusiastically labored to develop the next generation of blood typing instruments until just before his death. During his career Lyle published more than 120 peer-reviewed manuscripts and abstracts and was issued six patents. His contributions to our field were acknowledged with the Jean Julliard Memorial Prize from the International Society of Blood Transfusion in 1987 and the
Morton Grove-Rasmussen Memorial Award by the AABB in 1999. Those who worked closely with Lyle recognized his keen eye, inquisitive nature, and knack for lateral thinking. After noting that some organic dyes strongly stained glass, Lyle intuited that other dyes might be found that bound both red blood cells and polystyrene. Following the dictum that “one fails forward toward success,” he embarked on an Edisonian quest to identify the best such dye, eventually finding one that made solid-phase testing possible. Because his inventor’s itch was constant, Lyle also maintained a laboratory in the basement of his house. In addition to performing immunohematology studies that couldn’t wait until he returned to work, his wide-ranging home investigations included the development of dehydrated beer and other eclectic projects. Despite his professional successes, Lyle was most respected for his gentle wit, unflappable nature, and humility. He considered all of his colleagues to be friends and forged a creative research group that nurtured young scientists and drove Immucor innovation for decades. Lyle’s laboratory obsessions were only exceeded by devotion to his family, including his loving wife Jessie; his children Meghan, Mollie, and Ben; and his twin brother Kyle; and commitment to his faith. The other passions in Lyle’s life included camping, fishing, tennis (which he played at a highly competitive level for more than 20 years), and the rock group Kansas, a favorite of his since he was a college student and for whom he once worked as a roadie. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author acknowledges the assistance of Sheilagh Barclay, Ralph Eatz, Ed Gallup, Jessie Sinor, Darryl Stone, Terry Walts, and Randy Young for help in preparing this memorial. CONFLICT OF INTEREST The author has disclosed no conflicts of interest.
John D. Roback, MD, PhD e-mail: [email protected] Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Emory University School of Medicine Atlanta, GA
doi:10.1111/trf.13094 C 2015 AABB V
TRANSFUSION 2015;55;1135 Volume 55, May 2015 TRANSFUSION 1135
