Albert E. Dahlberg, MD, PhD, 83, died March 1. He was a professor emeritus of medical science in Brown’s Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Biochemistry whose research mostly focused on the structure and function of the prokaryotic ribosome.
Dr. Dahlberg grew up on Chicago’s South Side and earned his MD and PhD at the University of Chicago, where he also completed his pediatrics residency in 1967. While serving in the Public Health Service at the NIH, he and his wife, Pam, participated in the first-ever White House vigil to protest the Vietnam War. They also joined the Society of Friends and became lifelong Quakers. In 1970, they moved to Denmark while Dr. Dahlberg continued his research in biochemistry, and returned two years later to join the faculty at Brown.
The recipient of 43 years of uninterrupted NIH funding, Dr. Dahlberg co-authored two books and wrote chapters in 14 others. He published more than 120 journal articles on the topic of ribosomes. Forever committed to academic integrity and professional honesty, later in his career he published an article that refuted some of his previous findings on the mechanisms of ribosomal function.
During his four decades at Brown, Dr. Dahlberg taught, mentored, and advised countless undergraduate, graduate, medical, and doctoral students as well as postdocs. He served on numerous national and international scientific boards and Brown’s Faculty Executive Committee, and was the medical director of Beech Tree Laboratory and a founder of Milkhaus Laboratory.
Dr. Dahlberg will be remembered for his gentle and kind spirit, ability to light up a room with his presence, insatiable curiosity and wonder, love for his family and friends, and desire to make this world a better place for all. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Pam; three children; six grandchildren; and a brother and sister. Gifts may be made in his memory to the Hope Health Hulitar Hospice Center, the Providence Friends Meeting, or to any charitable organization that promotes peace in the world.
Marlene Cutitar ’83 MD’86 RES’92, 60, died May 20. She was a clinical assistant professor of surgery at The Warren Alpert Medical School and a breast surgeon in Providence.
A native of North Smithfield, RI, Dr. Cutitar arrived at Brown in 1979 to begin the seven-year Program in Medical Education. She completed the general surgery residency program at Brown in 1992, where she was one of three women who served as chief surgical resident that year.
Dr. Cutitar was at the vanguard of a growing cadre of women entering surgical specialties and was a staunch advocate and mentor for women in medicine throughout her career. She served on the boards of the Rhode Island Medical Society, Brown’s Office of Women in Medicine and Science, and the Rhode Island Medical Women’s Association, which named her Woman Physician of the Year in 2011. She was also a past president of the Rhode Island chapter of the American College of Surgeons. Last year, she received the New England Surgical Society’s Nathan Smith Distinguished Service Award.
Ever true to Brown, Dr. Cutitar was a member of the Brown Medical Alumni Association’s board of directors and served as its president from 2005 to 2006. She received the BMAA’s highest honor, the W. W. Keen Award, in 2007.
She is survived by her husband, Donald Acevedo, and countless colleagues and friends.
