Robert F. Furchgott
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Robert F. Furchgott | |
---|---|
Born | Robert Francis Furchgott June 4, 1916 Charleston, South Carolina |
Died | May 19, 2009 Seattle, Washington | (aged 92)
Nationality | United States |
Citizenship | American |
Spouse(s) | Lenore Mandelbaum (1941–1983; her death; 3 children) Margaret Gallagher Roth (?–2006; her death) |
Awards | Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1998 |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Biochemistry |
Institutions | SUNY Downstate Medical Center 1956–2009 Washington University in St. Louis 1949–1956 Cornell University 1940–1949 |
Signature | |
Robert Francis Furchgott (June 4, 1916 – May 19, 2009) was a Nobel Prize-winning American biochemist who contributed to the discovery of nitric oxide as a transient cellular signal in mammalian systems.
Early life and education[]
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Furchgott was born in Charleston, South Carolina, to Arthur Furchgott (December 1884 – January 1971), a department store owner, and Pena (Sorentrue) Furchgott.[citation needed] He graduated with a degree in chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1937),[citation needed] and went on to earn a Ph.D in biochemistry at Northwestern University (1940),[citation needed] immediately joining a medical faculty thereafter.
Career[]
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Furchgott was faculty member of Cornell University Medical College from 1940 to 1949,[citation needed] of Washington University School of Medicine from 1949 to 1956,[citation needed] and State University of New York Downstate Medical Center from 1956 to 2009, as professor of pharmacology.[citation needed]
In 1978, Furchgott discovered a substance in endothelial cells that relaxes blood vessels, calling it endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF).[citation needed] By 1986, he had worked out EDRF's nature and mechanism of action,[citation needed] and determined that EDRF was in fact nitric oxide (NO),[citation needed] an important compound in many aspects of cardiovascular physiology.[citation needed] This research is important in explaining a wide variety of neuronal, cardiovascular, and general physiologic processes of central importance in human health and disease.[1]
In addition to receiving the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of nitric oxide as a new cellular signal—shared in 1998 with Louis Ignarro and Ferid Murad [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] Furchgott's discovery, that NO gas causes blood vessels to dilate, provided a long sought-after explanation for the therapeutic effects of Nitroglycerin used to treat Angina pectoris and was later instrumental in the development of the erectile dysfunction treatment drug Viagra.[9] In 1991, Furchgott received a Gairdner Foundation International Award for his groundbreaking discoveries.[citation needed] He also received the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1996[10] and the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 1999 with Ferid Murad.[11]
Personal life[]
Furchgott, who was Jewish,[12] lived for most of his married and career life in Woodmere, NY (Long Island). He was married to Lenore Mandelbaum (February 1915 – April 1983)[13] from 1941 until she died aged 68. They had three daughters: Jane, Terry and Susan. His daughter, Susan, was a prolific artist in the San Francisco counter culture and a co-founder of the Kerista Commune (she was also known as "Even Eve" and "Eve Furchgott"). Robert Furchgott spent his later years with Margaret Gallagher Roth, who died March 14, 2006.[14] He served as a professor emeritus at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center. In 2008 he moved to Seattle's Ravenna neighborhood. Furchgott died on May 19, 2009[15] in Seattle. He is survived by his three daughters, four grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.
See also[]
- List of Jewish Nobel laureates
Further reading[]
- Anon. (2009) "Obituary: Robert Furchgott," The Telegraph (online), May 26, 2009, see,[16] accessed 11 August 2015.
- Raju, T N (2000), "The Nobel chronicles. 1998: Robert Francis Furchgott (b 1911), Louis J Ignarro (b 1941), and Ferid Murad (b 1936).", Lancet (published Jul 22, 2000), 356 (9226), p. 346, doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(05)73635-7, PMID 11071225, S2CID 53221905
- Rabelink, A J (1998), "Nobel prize in Medicine and Physiology 1998 for the discovery of the role of nitric oxide as a signalling molecule", Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde (published Dec 26, 1998), 142 (52), pp. 2828–30, PMID 10065255
- Laufs, U; Erdmann, E (1998), "Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system. Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1998", Dtsch. Med. Wochenschr. (published Dec 18, 1998), 123 (51–52), pp. 1562–5, doi:10.1055/s-0029-1237297, PMID 9893684
- Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "The Nobel Prize 1998 in physiology or medicine. Nitrogen oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Ugeskrift for Læger (published Dec 21, 1998), 160 (52), pp. 7571–8, PMID 9889673
- Nielsen, T T; Sørensen, K E (1998), "Discovery of "endogenous nitroglycerin", NO, as cellular signal molecule", Ugeskrift for Læger (published Dec 21, 1998), 160 (52), p. 7567, PMID 9889670
- Mitka, M (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize winners are announced: three discoverers of nitric oxide activity", JAMA (published Nov 18, 1998), 280 (19), p. 1648, doi:10.1001/jama.280.19.1648, PMID 9831980
- Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Lakartidningen (published Oct 21, 1998), 95 (43), pp. 4703–8, PMID 9821753
References[]
- ^ "Summary: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1998". NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2020. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ Raju, T N (2000), "The Nobel chronicles. 1998: Robert Francis Furchgott (b 1911), Louis J Ignarro (b 1941), and Ferid Murad (b 1936).", Lancet (published Jul 22, 2000), 356 (9226), p. 346, doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(05)73635-7, PMID 11071225, S2CID 53221905
- ^ Rabelink, A J (1998), "Nobel prize in Medicine and Physiology 1998 for the discovery of the role of nitric oxide as a signalling molecule", Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde (published Dec 26, 1998), 142 (52), pp. 2828–30, PMID 10065255
- ^ Laufs, U; Erdmann, E (1998), "Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system. Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1998", Dtsch. Med. Wochenschr. (published Dec 18, 1998), 123 (51–52), pp. 1562–5, doi:10.1055/s-0029-1237297, PMID 9893684
- ^ Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "The Nobel Prize 1998 in physiology or medicine. Nitrogen oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Ugeskrift for Læger (published Dec 21, 1998), 160 (52), pp. 7571–8, PMID 9889673
- ^ Nielsen, T T; Sørensen, K E (1998), "Discovery of "endogenous nitroglycerin", NO, as cellular signal molecule", Ugeskrift for Læger (published Dec 21, 1998), 160 (52), p. 7567, PMID 9889670
- ^ Mitka, M (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize winners are announced: three discoverers of nitric oxide activity", JAMA (published Nov 18, 1998), 280 (19), p. 1648, doi:10.1001/jama.280.19.1648, PMID 9831980
- ^ Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Lakartidningen (published Oct 21, 1998), 95 (43), pp. 4703–8, PMID 9821753
- ^ BBC News vom 23. Mai 2009: US „Viagra scientist“ dies at 92.
- ^ Furchgott, R.F. (1996), "The 1996 Albert Lasker Medical Research Awards. The discovery of endothelium-derived relaxing factor and its importance in the identification of nitric oxide", JAMA (published Oct 9, 1996), 276 (14), pp. 1186–8, doi:10.1001/jama.276.14.1186, PMID 8827976
- ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
- ^ "Seymour "Sy" Brody's". Fau.edu. Retrieved 2015-08-11.
- ^ "RootsWeb: Database Index". Ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved 2015-08-11.
- ^ "Paid Notice - Deaths ROTH, MARGARET - Paid Death Notice - NYTimes.com". New York Times. 2006-03-17. Retrieved 2015-08-11.
- ^ "SUNY Downstate Medical Center". Downstate.edu. Retrieved 2015-08-11.
- ^ "Robert Furchgott". Telegraph. 2009-05-26. Retrieved 2015-08-11.
External links[]
- The Robert F. Furchgott Society
- Robert F. Furchgott on Nobelprize.org
- His laboratory's webpage
- 1916 births
- 2009 deaths
- Nobel laureates in Physiology or Medicine
- American Nobel laureates
- Jewish Nobel laureates
- Nobel laureates affiliated with Missouri
- American biochemists
- American pharmacologists
- Jewish American scientists
- Jewish chemists
- People from Charleston, South Carolina
- SUNY Downstate Medical Center faculty
- Washington University in St. Louis faculty
- Cornell University faculty
- Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
- Recipients of the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research
- Northwestern University alumni
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni