Douglas Ishii Obituary

Ishii
Douglas Nobuo
Ishii
July 30, 1942
April 13, 2025

Born July 30, 1942; of Woodland, WA, Douglas Nobuo Ishii passed away on April 13, 2025 in Portland, OR with his wife and family at his side. Son of the late Fusaye and William Takeo Ishii, he was born into WWII internment at Santa Anita Assembly Center, a racetrack in Arcadia, CA, transferred to Topaz, UT concentration camp, then to Tule Lake Segregation Center, CA. He grew up in San Francisco government housing in Hunter's Point after he and his family were released, and immersed himself in the classics in the neighborhood library. At Polytechnic Hi he excelled in academics, soccer, and track. He loved surf fishing with his father at Ocean Beach, camping and exploring the Sierra Nevadas with his brother and sons, and delighted in teasing and protecting his mother and sisters.
At UC Berkeley, Doug earned a BA in Biochemistry, his PhD at Stanford Medical School in Pharmacology, and conducted postdoctoral work in Neurobiology. Moving to New York, he became Associate Professor of Pharmacology at Columbia Univ. In 1985, he and his wife, Wendy, moved to Fort Collins. At Colorado State University he became Professor of Physiology, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, retiring Professor Emeritus of Biomedical Sciences and Physiology.
Doug made many significant contributions to the field of medicine with respect to the pathogenesis of diabetic neurological complications and the causation of brain atrophy in Alzheimer's disease, focusing on IGFs I and II and their potential use in treatment. He served on the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Health, and the Juvenile Diabetes Int'l Foundation.
He received the Kugel Award from the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Int'l 1998, was honored as Research Scientist of the Year 2001 at Colorado State University, and for his work on the regeneration of the nervous system, received the NIH and the Nat'l Inst of Neurological & Communicative Disorders & Stroke "Research Career Development" Awards. Twenty patents were awarded for his research globally on treatment methods for diabetic retinopathy with insulin-like growth factors on the central nervous system. Doug was founder, board member, and chief executive officer of Aurogen, Inc. He loved to travel, lecturing and speaking at conferences and symposiums.
Always thoughtful, compassionate, and generous, he had an unwavering sense of honor, justice, civil rights, and commitment to humanitarian needs. He lived by the principles of the Bushido samurai code of honor and ways of the warrior: with courage, respect, loyalty, honesty, and self-control in thought, spirit, and action.
When he retired, he found a home in the forests of Washington, gardening, traveling, learning to play the ukelele, exploring the natural world, and hosting family with love, laughter, and kampai.
Douglas Ishii was married to the late Alma L. Howard and to Wendy Anne (Nute) Ishii of Colorado. He is survived by his third wife, Deborah Dimon; siblings Daniel Ikuo (Susan Hansen) Ishii, Rosemary Mutsuye (Rob) MacConnell, and Willitte Hisami (Michael) Herman; sons Jordon Tsuyoshi Ishii (Holli Hoffdahl), Gregory Masao Ishii (late Michelle Brown), and Aaron Takeo Ishii (Freedom Berry); and many beloved grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.
Douglas spent a lifetime focused on the microscopic: studying, analyzing, methodically unraveling biomedical mysteries, and searching for the understanding to help others through disease and pain--all the while supporting the arts, theater, music, and dancing us all to the end of love. His eyes now turn to the stars, and his steps explore a greater universe.
Dearly loved, he is deeply missed.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Civil Liberties Union, Doctors Without Borders, White Stork - Ukraine, Japanese American National Museum, Bas Bleu Theatre, or to the charity of your choice.