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Om P. Bahl

Professor Om P. Bahl, Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences, taught at the University at Buffalo from 1966 until his untimely death in 2004. Dr. Bahl led the Department to new levels of distinction. He was best known for his groundbreaking research on glycoprotein structure and function, which played a key role in providing the biochemical framework for the development of today’s home pregnancy test. And Dr. Bahl’s later research led to earlier detection of difficult-to-diagnose cancers to aid prognosis for better patient survival.

Not only was Dr. Bahl a distinguished researcher at the UB, he was an exceptional educator and mentor. Born in Lyallpur, India in 1927, Dr. Bahl came to the U.S. for his post doctoral work. His research was informed and shaped by his awareness of the social context of his work. Dr. Bahl understood the problem of population growth in a world of finite resources, and the necessity to find causes and cures for complex diseases such as cancer and multiple sclerosis.

During Dr. Bahl’s illustrious career, he served on a variety of editorial boards for scientific journals, worked as an advisor to the Population Council, the World Health Organization, and the Population Research Committee of the National Institutes of Health. His many honors included the Dernham Fellowship of the American Cancer Society, the American Chemical Society’s Schoellkopf Medal, and the Life Science Award from the Asian Indian Organizations in North America. He also received the Padma Bhushan – the highest civilian award conferred by the government of India and presented to Dr. Bahl in 1971 by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who showed keen interest in his research.

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