Edward R. Appelbaum, a molecular biologist in the Philadelphia area, dies at 72

Edward R. Appelbaum, 72, of Blue Bell, a molecular biologist in the Philadelphia area, died Wednesday, April 15, at Einstein Medical Center Montgomery after a five-year battle with bone marrow cancer.

Dr. Appelbaum had a 38-year career as a scientist and director of research teams in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

While employed by GlaxoSmithKline, he was a lead inventor of the drug Nucala, which has brought relief to patients with severe asthma. It targets eosinophils, white blood cells that are a normal part of the body’s immune system. Too many eosinophils can inflame the lungs, causing an asthma attack.

Nucala works by blocking a signaling protein in the immune system that causes the eosinophils to congregate in the airways and blood, according to a scientific journal and instructions for the drug.

He held 19 patents and published more than 40 articles. In 2017, GlaxoSmithKline honored him with its Inventor Award for his role in developing Nucala.

Born in Rochester, N.Y., to Sam and Ruth Appelbaum, he attended Brighton High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Rochester in 1970 and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

He met his future wife, medical student Laurie Robbins, while he was a postgraduate student in molecular genetics.

“They became Mr. and Mrs. in addition to Dr. and Dr. in an outdoor wedding in a park in Madison in 1977,” the Appelbaum family said in a statement.

A year later, they moved to Bethesda, Md., so that his wife could serve an internship and residency at Georgetown University and he could be a staff fellow at the National Institutes of Health.

In 1982, they returned to Madison, where Dr. Appelbaum was a senior scientist for Agrigenetics Inc., focusing on plant research.

In 1989, they settled in the Philadelphia area, where Dr. Appelbaum joined GlaxoSmithKline in Upper Merion. He led research teams investigating therapies based on gene expression and recombinant proteins.

In 2004, he moved to Centocor/Johnson & Johnson in Radnor to lead a team of 40 at multiple sites, developing a manufacturing process for a therapeutic antibody.

Dr. Appelbaum capped his career by returning to GlaxoSmithKline as a biochemist in 2010. He was a research director until illness forced him to retire in 2016.

As a boy, he tinkered with his chemistry set in the basement. As an adult, he thrived in the laboratory, engaging in the scientific process of observing some new phenomenon, then forming and testing a hypothesis to explain it.

Dr. Appelbaum enjoyed collaborating with scientists from many countries. He was proud that his work led to development of pharmaceutical products that improved or saved lives.

“It seems to me,” he once wrote, “that it is a defining trait of the human species to search for knowledge and apply that collective knowledge to improve quality of life.”

Dr. Appelbaum enjoyed hiking, biking, and swimming. His favorite spots for outdoor activities were Montgomery County, the national parks in the Western U.S., and Cape Cod.

After retiring, he volunteered to test the quality of creek water in a nature preserve near his home for the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association.

“He will be remembered as a warm, upbeat, caring, unassuming person who never had a harsh word for anyone,” his family said.

Besides his wife of 42 years, he is survived by daughters Karen Appelbaum Pearce and Susan A. Wolbransky; a granddaughter; two sisters; and an extended family. A brother died earlier.

Services were private. A memorial service will be held after travel restrictions linked to the pandemic are lifted.

Donations may be made to the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association, 12 Morris Rd., Ambler, Pa. 19002, or the Abramson Cancer Center–Penn Medicine, 3400 Spruce St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19104.