- Richard Kuhn
Infobox Scientist
name = Richard Kuhn
image_size = 180px
birth_date = birth date|1900|12|03|df=yes
birth_place =Vienna ,Austria
death_date = death date and age|1967|08|01|1900|12|03|df=yes
death_place =Heidelberg ,Germany
nationality =Germany ,Austria
field =Chemistry
work_places =
alma_mater =
doctoral_advisor =
doctoral_students =
known_for =
prizes =Nobel Prize for Chemistry (1938)Richard Kuhn (
December 3 1900 –August 1 1967 ) was anAustria n-German biochemist andNobel laureate .Biography
Early life
Kuhn was born in
Vienna ,Austria where he attended grammar school and high school. His interest in chemistry surfaced early, however he was universally interested and decided late to study chemistry. Beginning in 1918 he attended lectures at theUniversity of Vienna in chemistry. He finished his chemistry studies atUniversity of Munich and received his doctoral degree in 1922 withRichard Willstätter for a scientific work on enzymes.After graduating Kuhn continued his scientific career, first in Munich, then at the
ETH Zurich and from 1929 onwards at the University of Heidelberg, where he was head of the chemistry department beginning in 1937. In 1928 he married Daisy Hartmann and the couple subsequently had two sons and four daughters.Research
Kuhn's areas of study included: investigations of theoretical problems of
organic chemistry (stereochemistry of aliphatic and aromatic compounds; syntheses of polyenes and cumulenes; constitution and colour; the acidity of hydrocarbons), as well as extensive fields inbiochemistry (carotenoids ;flavins ;vitamins andenzymes ). Specifically, he carried out important work on vitamin B2 and the antidermatitis vitamin B6.In 1929 he became Principal of the Institute for Chemistry at the newly founded Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Medical Research (which, since 1950, has been renamed the
Max Planck Institut for Medical Research inHeidelberg . By 1937 he also took over the administration of this Institute.In addition to these duties he also served as of Professor of Biochemistry at the
University of Heidelberg , and for one year he was at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia as a Visiting Research Professor for Physiological chemistry.He was subsequently awarded the
Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1938 for his "work on carotenoids and vitamins," but was unable to accept the award until afterWorld War II . [cite web | title=Nobel Laureates Facts| url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/nobelprize_facts.html | publisher=The Nobel Foundation | date=2008 | accessdate=2008-07-29] Kuhn is also credited with the discovery of the deadlynerve agent Soman in 1944.It is also worth noting that for a period of eight years (1910-1918) Richard Kuhn was a schoolmate of
Wolfgang Pauli who was awarded theNobel Prize in Physics for 1945.Kuhn was also editor of "
Justus Liebig s Annalen der Chemie" from 1948.Kuhn died in 1967 in
Heidelberg ,Germany , aged 66.References
*cite journal | last=Shampo | first=M A | authorlink= | coauthors=Kyle R A | year=2000|month=Oct. | title=Richard Kuhn--Nobel Prize for work on carotenoids and vitamins | journal=
Mayo Clin. Proc. | volume=75 | issue=10 | pages=990 | issn = 0025-6196| pmid = 11040844
*cite journal | last=Baer | first=H H | authorlink= | year=1969|month= | title=Richard Kuhn; 1900-1967 | journal=Advances in carbohydrate chemistry and biochemistry | volume=24 | issue= | pages=1-12 | publisher= | issn = 0065-2318| pmid = 4909158External links
*cite web | author=Karl Grandin, ed. | title=Richard Kuhn Biography | url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1938/kuhn-bio.html | work=Les Prix Nobel | publisher=The Nobel Foundation | date=1938 | accessdate=2008-07-29
* [http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1938/index.html 1938 Nobel Prize in Chemistry]
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