Mr Blobel was born inWaltersdorfin thePrussianProvince
of Lower Silesia.
In January 1945 his family fled from nativeSilesiafrom the
advancing Red Army. On their way to the West they passed through the beautiful
old city ofDresden, which left deep impressions in the
young boy. Only days after their stayDresden was destroyed
in the catastrophicair bombingbetween 13 February and 15 February
1945. The family could witness this event some 30 kilometers away and the young
boy again was deeply impressed by the red night sky reflecting the firestorm in
the burning city, but the war was still not at its end and Blobel's 19-year-old
sister was killed some weeks later in an air attack on a train she was
travelling in, and buried in a mass grave. After the war Günter Blobel grew up and
attendedgymnasiumin theSaxontown ofFreiberg.
He graduated at theUniversity of Tübingenin 1960 and received his Ph.D. from
theUniversity of
Wisconsin–Madisonin 1967. He was
appointed to theHoward Hughes
Medical Institutein 1986.