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Gertrude B. Elion

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Gertrude "Trudy"[1] Belle Elion (January 23, 1918 – February 21, 1999) was an American biochemist and pharmacologist, who shared the 1988 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with George H. Hitchings and Sir James Black for their use of innovative methods of rational drug design for the development of new drugs.[2] This new method focused on understanding the target of the drug rather than simply using trial-and-error. Her work led to the creation of the anti-retroviral drug AZT, which was the first drug widely used against AIDS. Her well known works also include the development of the first immunosuppressive drug, azathioprine, used to fight rejection in organ transplants, and the first successful antiviral drug, acyclovir (ACV), used in the treatment of herpes infection.[3]

Gertrude Elion
ForMemRS
Elion in 1983
Born
Gertrude Belle Elion

(1918-01-23)January 23, 1918
New York City, United States
DiedFebruary 21, 1999(1999-02-21) (aged 81)
Chapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S
EducationHunter College
New York University
Awards
Scientific career
Institutions
Websitewww.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/1988/elion-bio.html
Signature

Early life and education

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Elion was born in New York City on January 23, 1918,[4] to parents Robert Elion, a Lithuanian Jewish immigrant and a dentist, and Bertha Cohen, a Polish Jewish immigrant. Her family lost their wealth after the Wall Street Crash of 1929.[5]: 64  Elion was an excellent student who graduated from Walton High School at the age of 15.[1] When she was 15, her grandfather died of stomach cancer, and being with him during his last moments inspired Elion to pursue a career in science and medicine in college.[6][7][8][9] She was Phi Beta Kappa[10] at Hunter College, which she was able to attend for free due to her grades, graduating summa cum laude in 1937 with a degree in chemistry.[1][11] Unable to find a paying research job after graduating because she was a woman, Elion worked as a secretary and high school teacher before working in an unpaid position at a chemistry lab. Eventually, she saved up enough money to attend New York University and she earned her M.Sc. in 1941, while working as a high school teacher during the day.[12] In an interview after receiving her Nobel Prize, she stated that she believed the sole reason she was able to further her education as a young woman was because she was able to attend Hunter College for free.[13] Her fifteen financial aid applications for graduate school were turned down due to gender bias, so she enrolled in a secretarial school, where she attended only six weeks before she found a job.[5]: 65 

Unable to obtain a graduate research position, she worked as a food quality supervisor at A&P supermarkets[5]: 65  and for a food lab in New York, testing the acidity of pickles and the color of egg yolk going into mayonnaise. She moved to a position at Johnson & Johnson that she hoped would be more promising, but ultimately involved testing the strength of sutures.[7] In 1944, she left to work as an assistant to George H. Hitchings at the Burroughs-Wellcome pharmaceutical company (now GlaxoSmithKline) in Tuckahoe, New York.[14][15][16][17][18][19] Hitchings was using a new way of developing drugs, by intentionally imitating natural compounds instead of through trial and error. Specifically, he was interested in synthesizing antagonists to nucleic acid derivatives, with the goal that these antagonists would integrate into biological pathways.[7][12] He believed that if he could trick cancer cells into accepting artificial compounds for their growth, they could be destroyed without also destroying normal cells.[5]: 65 Elion synthesized anti-metabolites of purines, and in 1950, she developed the anti-cancer drugs tioguanine and mercaptopurine.[7][5]: 66 

She pursued graduate studies at night school at New York University Tandon School of Engineering (then Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute), but after several years of long-range commuting, she was informed that she would no longer be able to continue her doctorate on a part-time basis, but would need to give up her job and go to school full-time. Elion made a critical decision in her life, and stayed with her job and give up the pursuit of her doctorate.[11] She never obtained a formal Ph.D.,[20] but was later awarded an honorary Ph.D. from New York University Tandon School of Engineering (then Polytechnic University of New York) in 1989 and an honorary S.D. degree from Harvard University in 1998.

Personal life

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Soon after graduating from Hunter College, Elion met Leonard Canter, an outstanding statistics student at City College of New York (CCNY). They planned to marry, but Leonard became ill. On June 25, 1941, he died from bacterial endocarditis, an infection of his heart valves.[21] In her Nobel interview, she stated that this furthered her drive to become a research scientist and pharmacologist.

Elion never married or had children.[5]: 65  However, her brother, whom she was close with, married and had three sons and a daughter that she took pride in being able to watch grow. She listed her hobbies as photography, travel, opera and ballet, and listening to music.[22] After Burroughs Wellcome moved to Research Triangle Park in North Carolina, Elion moved to nearby Chapel Hill. She retired in 1983 from Burroughs Wellcome to spend more time traveling and attending the opera. She continued to make important scientific contributions after her retirement.[7] One of her passions during this time was encouraging other women to pursue careers in science.[23]

Gertrude Elion died in North Carolina in 1999, aged 81.[5]: 76 

Career and research

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While Elion had many jobs to support herself and put herself through school, Elion had also worked for the National Cancer Institute, American Association for Cancer Research, and World Health Organization, among other organizations. From 1967 to 1983, she was the head of the department of experimental therapy for Burroughs Wellcome. She officially retired from Burroughs and Wellcome in 1983.

She was affiliated with Duke University as adjunct professor of pharmacology and of experimental medicine from 1971 to 1983 and research professor from 1983 to 1999.[24] During her time at Duke, she focused on mentoring medical and graduate students. She published more than 25 papers with the students she mentored at Duke.[23]

Even after her retirement from Burroughs Wellcome, Gertrude continued almost full-time work at the lab. She played a significant role in the development of AZT, one of the first drugs used to treat HIV and AIDS.[12] She also was crucial in the development of nelarabine, which she worked on until her death in 1999.[7]

Rather than relying on trial and error, Elion and Hitchings discovered new drugs using rational drug design, which used the differences in biochemistry and metabolism between normal human cells and pathogens (disease-causing agents such as cancer cells, protozoa, bacteria, and viruses) to design drugs that could kill or inhibit the reproduction of particular pathogens without harming human cells. The drugs they developed are used to treat a variety of maladies, such as leukemia, malaria, lupus, hepatitis, arthritis, gout,[25] organ transplant rejection (azathioprine), as well as herpes (acyclovir, which was the first selective and effective drug of its kind).[26] Most of Elion's early work came from the use and development of purine derivatives. Elion's research contributed to the development of:

Selected works by Gertrude B. Elion

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  • Elion GB; Hitchins GH; Vanderwerff H (1951). "Antagonists of Nucleic Acid Derivatives. VI. Purines" (PDF). Journal of Biological Chemistry. 192 (2): 505–518. doi:10.1016/S0021-9258(19)77771-0. PMID 14907641.
  • “Interaction of Anticancer Drugs with Enzymes.” In Pharmacological Basis of Cancer Chemotherapy (1975).
  • Elion, G. (1989). "The Purine Path to Chemotherapy". Science. 244 (4900): 41–47. Bibcode:1989Sci...244...41E. doi:10.1126/science.2649979. PMID 2649979.
  • Elion, G. B.; Furman, P. A.; Fyfe, J. A.; Miranda, P. d.; Beauchamp, L.; Schaeffer, H. J. (1977). "Selectivity of Action of an Antiherpetic Agent, 9-(2-hydroxyethoxymethyl) guanine". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 74 (12): 5716–5720. Bibcode:1977PNAS...74.5716E. doi:10.1073/pnas.74.12.5716. PMC 431864. PMID 202961.
  • Elion, Gertrude B.; Hitchings, George H. (1955). "The Synthesis of 6-Thioguanine". Journal of the American Chemical Society. 77 (6): 1676. doi:10.1021/ja01611a082.

Awards and honors

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In 1988 Elion received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, together with Hitchings and Sir James Black for discoveries of "important new principles of drug treatment".[29] Elion was the fifth woman Nobel laureate in Medicine and the ninth in science in general, and one of only a handful of laureates without a doctoral degree.[25] She was the only woman honored with a Nobel Prize that year. She was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences in 1990,[30] a member of the Institute of Medicine in 1991[31] and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences also in 1991.[32]

Her awards include the Garvan-Olin Medal (1968),[33] the Sloan-Kettering Institute Judd Award (1983),[1] the American Chemical Society Distinguished Chemist Award (1985),[1] the American Academy of Achievement's Golden Plate Award (1989),[34] the American Association for Cancer Research Cain Award (1985),[1] the American Cancer Society Medal of Honor (1990),[1] the National Medal of Science (1991),[35] and the Lemelson-MIT Lifetime Achievement Award (1997).[36] In 1991 Elion became the first woman to be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.[37] She was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame also in 1991.[38] In 1992, she was elected to the Engineering and Science Hall of Fame.[39] She was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS) in 1995.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Gertrude Elion | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  2. ^ Adams, Patrick, Meet the woman who gave the world antiviral drugs, National Geographic, August 31, 2020
  3. ^ Kresge, Nicole; Simoni, Robert D.; Hill, Robert L. (May 9, 2008). "Developing the Purine Nucleoside Analogue Acyclovir: the Work of Gertrude B. Elion". J. Biol. Chem. 283 (19): e11. doi:10.1016/S0021-9258(20)59806-2. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  4. ^ a b Avery, Mary Ellen (2008). "Gertrude Belle Elion. 23 January 1918 – 21 February 1999". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 54: 161–168. doi:10.1098/rsbm.2007.0051.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Stille, Darlene R. (1995). Extraordinary Women Scientists. Childrens Press.
  6. ^ "Gertrude Elion, M.Sc. Biography and Interview". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Koeing, Rick (2006). "The Legacy of Great Science: The Work of Nobel Laureate Gertrude Elion Lives On". The Oncologist. 11 (9): 961–965. doi:10.1634/theoncologist.11-9-961. PMID 17030634.
  8. ^ Larsen, Kristine. "Gertrude Elion 1918–1999". Jewish Women's Archive Encyclopedia. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  9. ^ Bertha and Gertrude Elion | Jewish Women's Archive. Jwa.org. Retrieved on May 12, 2014.
  10. ^ Colburn, Don (October 25, 1988). "PATHWAY TO THE PRIZE". Washington Post. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  11. ^ a b Elion, Gertrude. "Les Prix Nobel". Nobel Foundation. Retrieved February 21, 2014.
  12. ^ a b c Avery, Mary Ellen (December 12, 2008). "Gertrude Belle Elion. 23 January 1918 — 21 February 1999". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 54: 161–168. doi:10.1098/rsbm.2007.0051. ISSN 0080-4606.
  13. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1988". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  14. ^ "Autobiography of Elion at NobelPrize.org". Nobel.se. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  15. ^ "Biographical Memoirs Home". nasonline.org. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  16. ^ "Gertrude Elion - Jewish Women's Archive". JWA.org. Archived from the original on May 19, 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  17. ^ Altman, Lawrence K. (February 23, 1999). "Gertrude Elion, Drug Developer, Dies at 81". The New York Times. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  18. ^ Gertrude B. Elion, Biography of Gertrude B. Elion, Jewish Women Encyclopedia
  19. ^ Bouton, Katherine (January 29, 1989). "The Nobel Pair". The New York Times. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g "George Hitchings and Gertrude Elion". Science History Institute. June 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  21. ^ McDowell, Julie L. (2002). "A lifetime quest for a cure" (PDF). Modern Drug Discovery (October): 51–52. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  22. ^ Staff (1988). "The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1988: Sir James W. Black, Gertrude B. Elion, George H. Hitchings". Nobelprize.org. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  23. ^ a b Colvin, Michael (May 28, 1999). "Gertrude Belle Elion (1918-1999)". Science. 284 (5419): 1480. doi:10.1126/science.284.5419.1480. PMID 10383327. S2CID 45055062.
  24. ^ Wayne, Tiffany K. American Women of Science Since 1900: Essays A–H. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 370. ISBN 978-1598841589.
  25. ^ a b "Gertrude Elion | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Archived from the original on May 19, 2018. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  26. ^ Wasserman, Elga R. (2000). The door in the dream : conversations with eminent women in science. Joseph Henry Press. p. 47. ISBN 978-0-309-06568-9.
  27. ^ Marx, Vivien (2005). "6-Mercaptopurine". Chemical & Engineering News. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  28. ^ Koenig, R. (October 1, 2006). "The Legacy of Great Science: The Work of Nobel Laureate Gertrude Elion Lives On". The Oncologist. 11 (9): 961–965. doi:10.1634/theoncologist.11-9-961. PMID 17030634.
  29. ^ Wasserman, Elga R. (2000). The door in the dream : conversations with eminent women in science. Joseph Henry Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-309-06568-9.
  30. ^ "Gertrude B. Elion". National Academy of Sciences. Retrieved July 26, 2014.
  31. ^ "Directory: IOM Member – Gertrude B. Elion, M.S." Institute of Medicine. Retrieved July 26, 2014.[permanent dead link‍]
  32. ^ "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter E" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved July 25, 2014.
  33. ^ "Francis P. Garvan–John M. Olin Medal". American Chemical Society. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  34. ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  35. ^ Staff. "The President's National Medal of Science: Recipient Details: Gertrude B. Elion". National Science Foundation. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  36. ^ "$100,000 Lemelson-MIT Lifetime Achievement Award Winners" (PDF). MIT Technology Review Custom + Lemelson-MIT Program. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 29, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  37. ^ Staff. "Invent Now: Hall of Fame: Gertrude Belle Elion". National Inventors Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on September 1, 2012. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  38. ^ "Elion, Gertrude Belle". National Women's Hall of Fame. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  39. ^ Wasserman, Elga R. (2000). The door in the dream : conversations with eminent women in science. Joseph Henry Press. p. 49. ISBN 978-0-309-06568-9.

Further reading

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  • MacBain, Jenny (2004). Gertrude Elion : Nobel prize winner in physiology and medicine (1st ed.). Rosen Pub. Group. ISBN 9780823938766. OCLC 50285519.
  • Nobel Prize Women in Science by Sharon Bertsch McGrayne
  • Mary Ellen Avery Gertrude Elion National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs, VOLUME 78, 2000 BY NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS WASHINGTON, D.C
  • Royal Society biographical memoir, Volume 54 in 2008.
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