Alan N. Schechter

Alan Neil Schechter, a distinguished medical researcher at the National Institutes of Health, died on Wednesday, October 15, 2025. He was 86.

Dr. Schechter graduated from Cornell University in 1959, received his M.D. in 1963 from the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and did clinical training at the Albert Einstein Medical College.

In 1965 he began a 60-year career at the NIH, including work on the fundamental processes of protein-folding with Nobel Prize laureate Dr. Christian B. Anfinsen. In 1981 he succeeded Dr. Anfinsen as Chief of what is now called the Molecular Medicine Branch of NIDDK, working tirelessly to bridge the divide between basic and clinical research. His work on the polymerization of hemoglobin S provided crucial insights that led to the use of hydroxyurea as an FDA-approved therapy for sickle cell patients in 1998. More recently, he made significant progress on understanding the role of nitric oxide in regulating blood flow.

Dr. Schechter served in the United States Public Health Service. He contributed to the scientific community and to the NIH as an institution as a teacher, an editor, a frequent advisory board member, Acting NIH Historian, and a long-time board member of the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences. He was always eager to learn from others and had an extraordinary capacity to connect with people across disciplines, fostering collaborations that bridged continents and changed lives. He was a scientist's scientist—rigorous in thought, generous with knowledge, and deeply committed to the advancement of human health through research. He received numerous awards.

He was an avid collector of art, recently loaning the Vassar College Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center part of his extensive collection of 19th century Japanese woodblock prints. His home overflowed with books, testifying to his passion for knowledge of science, history, and art, and he loved acquiring the latest technological gadgets.

He is survived by his beloved wife of 60 years, Geraldine Poppa Schechter, M.D., the former Chief of Hematology at the Washington Veterans Administration Hospital. They enjoyed a six-decade partnership devoted to building a family, the advancement of medical knowledge, and caring for others. His children Daniele Schechter Huerta (married to Frank Huerta) and Andrew Schechter (married to Sarah Kline), his grandchildren Bryce Huerta, Mark Huerta, Acadia Schechter, and Leah Schechter, and his sister Patricia Blinder all remember his keen intellect, wisdom, and love.

Funeral Services will be held on Monday, October 20 at 12 noon at Bethesda Jewish Congregation, 6601 Bradley Blvd, Bethesda, MD with burial service at 2 p.m. at Garden of Remembrance Memorial Park, 14321 Comus Road, Clarksburg, MD.

In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the Wilson Museum of Castine, Maine or to the Suburban Hospital Foundation. Services entrusted to Sagel Bloomfield Danzansky Goldberg Funeral Care.