Gustav Embden | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Portrait on a plaque inFrankfurt | |
| Born | 10 November 1874 Hamburg, Germany |
| Died | 25 July 1933 (1933-07-26) (aged 58) Nassau, Germany |
| Nationality | German |
| Known for | Embden–Meyerhof pathway |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Physiological chemist |
Gustav Georg Embden (10 November 1874 – 25 July 1933) was a Germanphysiological chemist.
Gustav Embden was a son of the Hamburg lawyer and politicianGeorge Heinrich Embden. His grandmotherCharlotte Heine was a well-knownsalonnière and a sister of the poetHeinrich Heine.
Embden initially studied inFreiburg,Strasbourg,Munich,Berlin, andZurich under the famous physiologists of his time, includingJohannes von Kries,Franz Hofmeister, Gaule,Paul Ehrlich, andJulius Richard Ewald.[1] In 1904, he became the director of the chemistry laboratory of the medical clinic at the Frankfurt-Sachsenhausen municipal hospital.[1] His research here helped to build the clinic into the Physiological Institute by 1907 and into the University Institute for Vegetative Physiology in 1914.[1] In the same year, he retained his directorship[1] and started teaching at theUniversity of Frankfurt am Main.[2] Embden served as therector of the university from 1925 to 1926.[1]
Embden conducted studies oncarbohydrate metabolism andmuscle contraction, and he was the first to discover and link together all the steps involved in the conversion ofglycogen tolactic acid.[1][2] In 1918,Otto Fritz Meyerhof's work oncellularmetabolism showed that the process involved the breakdown ofglucose to lactic acid. Embden is known for having worked out the precise steps involved in this breakdown. Henceforth, this cellular metabolic sequence from glycogen to lactic acid became known as theEmbden–Meyerhof pathway.[2]
Embden had also worked on developing a technique to prevent tissue damage. In doing so, he discovered theliver's role in metabolic processes, thereby laying a foundation for understanding normal sugar metabolism and of its pathological form,diabetes.[1][2]
Some scientific historians, such as Thomas Kuhn, consider the work done in the 1930s in the laboratories ofMeyerhof,Parnas, Embden,Warburg, etc. to be the mark of a true scientific revolution.[3]
Although Embden was never awarded aNobel Prize, he was nominated 12 times over 8 years.[4]
| Nobel Prize Academic Field | Year | Nominator(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Physiology or Medicine | 1923 | Karl Hürthle, Albrecht Julius Theodor Bethe,Ernst Schmitz |
| Physiology or Medicine | 1924 | Albrecht Kossel |
| Physiology or Medicine | 1927 | Albrecht Kossel |
| Physiology or Medicine | 1929 | L Seitz,Bernh. Fischer-Wasels,K Goldstein |
| Physiology or Medicine | 1930 | Ernst Schmitz |
| Physiology or Medicine | 1932 | A Dieudonné |
| Chemistry | 1932 | Hans von Euler-Chelpin |
| Physiology or Medicine | 1933 | E Cruickshank |
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