Robert G. Green papers

Robert Gladding Green (1895-1947) was world renowned for his research on diseases in animals caused by viruses and its relationship to cancer. He earned his B.A (1919), a M.A. (1920) in bacteriology, and his M.B. and M.D. (1922) all at the University of Minnesota.

Born in Wadena, Minnesota, he attended Valparaiso University from 1914 to 1916 before transferring to the University of Minnesota to complete his bachelor's degree. He joined the staff at the University of Minnesota in 1918 as a laboratory assistant and served as an instructor, assistant professor, and associate professor before being appointed as a full professor of bacteriology and immunology in 1929. He was promoted to chair of the department of bacteriology in 1947, but served for only six months before his death on September 6, 1947 at age 52.

In the 1920s, Dr. Green hypothesized the evolutionary nature of viruses and how they cause disease. In 1946, he developed a revolutionary theory of how cancer cells spread in the body. From 1932-1940, Dr. Green directed the Minnesota Wildlife Disease Investigation, sponsored by the State of Minnesota, the University of Minnesota and the United States Biological Survey. During his tenure, he created a vaccine to prevent encephalitis in foxes. He also discovered a vitamin deficiency causing widespread death in foxes and developed a vaccine effective against canine distemper.