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Robert F. Furchgott
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American pharmacologist (1916-2009)
Furchgott was born in Charleston, South Carolina, and graduated with a BS in chemistry from the University of North Carolina in 1937. Three years later he gained his PhD in biochemistry at Northwestern University. From 1956 to 1988 he worked in the department of pharmacology at the State University of New York, and since 1988 has been Distinguished Professor, State University of New York Health Science Center. In 1998 he shared the Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine with Louis Ignarro and Ferid Murad for their discovery that molecules of the gas nitrogen monoxide (nitric oxide, NO) can transmit signals in the cardiovascular system.
Nitrogen monoxide, produced by one cell, acts by penetrating membranes and regulating the function of another cell. Nerves and hormones are well known as signal carriers, but this discovery was a totally new signaling principle in a biological system.
Furchgott began by researching the actions of drugs on blood vessels, but often observed contradictory results. Sometimes a drug acted to contract a vessel, but at other times it dilated the vessel. In 1980 he discovered that the neurotransmitter acetylcholine did not act to dilate blood vessels if the endothelium (surface cells) of the receiving cell were damaged. He deduced that the cells of the endothelium produce another hitherto unknown signal substance that makes the smooth muscle cells of the vascular system relax. He called the substance endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF), and other pharmacologists (including Ignarro) set out to find it.
| Columbia Encyclopedia: Robert Francis Furchgott |
Furchgott, Robert Francis, 1916-2009, American biochemist, b. Charleston, S.C., Ph.D. Northwestern Univ., 1940. Furchgott spent his entire career as a professor (1956-89) at the State Univ. of New York. With Louis J. Ignarro and Ferid Murad, he was awareded the 1998 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for discoveries concerning the role of nitric oxide as a signaling molecule in the cardiovascular system. In studying the effect of drugs on blood vessels, Furchgott observed that the same drug could cause both contraction and dilation. He went on to demonstrate that endothelial cells in blood vessels produce a signal molecule that induces relaxation in vascular smooth muscle. At the time of his discovery, the nature of this signal molecule was unknown; it was referred to simply as endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF). Contributions from the other two recipients of the 1998 Nobel prize led to the discovery that EDRF was nitric oxide. Their work later led to the development of sildenafil citrate (Viagra), an anti-impotence drug.
| Wikipedia: Robert F. Furchgott |
| Robert F. Furchgott | |
|---|---|
 Robert Francis Furchgott
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| Born | June 4, 1916 Charleston, South Carolina |
| Died | May 19, 2009 (aged 92) Seattle, Washington |
| Citizenship | American |
| Nationality | United States |
| Ethnicity | Ashkenazi Jewish |
| Fields | biochemistry |
| Notable awards | Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1998 |
Robert Francis Furchgott (June 4, 1916 – May 19, 2009) was a Nobel Prize-winning American biochemist.
Furchgott was born in Charleston, SC, to Arthur Furchgott (December 1884 - January 1971) and Pena Sorentrue Furchgott. He graduated with a degree in chemistry in 1937 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, received his Ph.D in biochemistry at Northwestern University in 1940. He was faculty member of Washington University School of Medicine from 1949 to 1956. From 1956 to 1988, he was professor of pharmacology at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center.
In 1978, Furchgott discovered a substance in endothelial cells that relaxes blood vessels, calling it endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF). By 1986, he had worked out EDRF's nature and mechanism of action, and determined that EDRF was in fact nitric oxide (NO), an important compound in many aspects of cardiovascular physiology. This research was important in the creation of Viagra.
From 1989 to 2004, Furchgott was a professor of pharmacology at the University of Miami School of Medicine.
Aside from the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine he received in 1998, Furchgott has also received a Gairdner Foundation International Award for his groundbreaking discoveries (1991) and the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research (1996), the latter with Ferid Murad.
Furchgott, who was Jewish,[1] lived in Brooklyn. He was married to Lenore Mandelbaum (February 1915 - April 1983)[2] from 1941 until she died aged 68. They had three daughters: Jane, Susan and Terry. He later married Margaret Gallagher Roth, who predeceased him. 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[3] in Seattle. He is survived by his three daughters, four grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
References
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (May 2009) |
- Raju, T N (2000), "The Nobel chronicles. 1998: Robert Francis Furchgott (b 1911), Louis J Ignarro (b 1941), and Ferid Murad (b 1936).", Lancet 356 (9226): 346, 2000 Jul 22, PMID 11071225
- 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 142 (52): 2828–30, 1998 Dec 26, 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. 123 (51-52): 1562–5, 1998 Dec 18, 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", Ugeskr. Laeg. 160 (52): 7571–8, 1998 Dec 21, PMID 9889673
- Nielsen, T T; Sørensen, K E (1998), "Discovery of "endogenous nitroglycerin", NO, as cellular signal molecule", Ugeskr. Laeg. 160 (52): 7567, 1998 Dec 21, PMID 9889670
- Mitka, M (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize winners are announced: three discoverers of nitric oxide activity.", JAMA 280 (19): 1648, 1998 Nov 18, doi:, 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 95 (43): 4703–8, 1998 Oct 21, PMID 9821753
- 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 276 (14): 1186–8, 1996 Oct 9, doi:, PMID 8827976
External links
- The Robert F. Furchgott Society
- Furchgott's autobiography (until 1998, at nobelprize.org)
- His laboratory's webpage
- Robert Furchgott - Daily Telegraph obituary
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Mentioned in
- Louis Joseph Ignarro (American physician)
- Ferid Murad (American physician)
- Year 1998 (in Science & Technology)
- Nobel Prizes (table)
