Jump to content

William Howard Stein: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Cmatvc (talk | contribs)
92 edits
m →Late Life and Death: changed title of citation to reflect actual title
m →Later life and death: pipe not needed
 
(37 intermediate revisions by 21 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|American biochemist (1911–1980)}}
{{more citations needed|date=February 2013}}
{{more citations needed|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox scientist
{{Infobox scientist
Line 8: Line 9:
| death_place = [[New York City]], New York, USA
| death_place = [[New York City]], New York, USA
| nationality =
| nationality =
| residence =
| residence =
| field = [[Biochemistry]]
| field = [[Biochemistry]]
| work_institutions = [[Rockefeller University]]
| work_institution = [[Rockefeller University]], [[University of Chicago]]
| education = [[Harvard University]]<br>[[Columbia University]]
| education = [[Harvard University]]<br>[[Columbia University]]
| doctoral_advisor =
| doctoral_advisor = [[Hans Thacher Clarke]]
| thesis_title = The Composition of Elastin
| thesis_year =1938
| thesis_url =http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/576654226
| doctoral_students =
| doctoral_students =
| work_institution =
| known_for =
| known_for =
| prizes = [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]] (1972)
| prizes = [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]] (1972)
|spouse= Phoebe Hockstader (1936–1980; his death; 3 children)<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/01/03/obituaries/phoebe-h-stein-75-health-care-advocate.html |title = Phoebe H. Stein, 75, Health-Care Advocate|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 1989-01-03}}</ref> (1913–1989)
|spouse= Phoebe Hockstader (1936–1980; his death; 3 children)<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/01/03/obituaries/phoebe-h-stein-75-health-care-advocate.html |title = Phoebe H. Stein, 75, Health-Care Advocate|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 1989-01-03}}</ref> (1913–1989)
}}
}}
'''William Howard Stein''' (June 25, 1911 &ndash; February 2, 1980) was an American [[biochemist]] who collaborated in the determination of the [[ribonuclease]] sequence, as well as how its structure relates to [[catalytic activity]], earning a [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]] in 1972 for his work.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1972/summary/|access-date=2021-04-07|website=NobelPrize.org|language=en-US}}</ref> Stein was also involved in the invention of the automatic [[amino acid]] analyzer, an advancement in [[chromatography]] that opened the door to modern methods of chromatography, such as liquid chromatography and [[gas chromatography]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/294759403|title=Chapters in the evolution of chromatography|vauthors=Ettre LS|date=2008|publisher=Imperial College Press|others=John V. Hinshaw|isbn=1-86094-944-4|location=London|pages=246, 253–254, 372–373|oclc=294759403}}</ref>
'''William Howard Stein''' (June 25, 1911 &ndash; February 2, 1980) was an American [[biochemist]] who collaborated in the determination of the [[ribonuclease]] sequence, as well as how its structure relates to [[catalytic activity]], earning a [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]] in 1972 for his work.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1972/summary/|access-date=2021-04-07|website=NobelPrize.org|language=en-US}}</ref> Stein was also involved in the invention of the automatic [[amino acid]] analyzer, an advancement in [[chromatography]] that opened the door to modern methods of chromatography, such as liquid chromatography and [[gas chromatography]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/294759403|title=Chapters in the evolution of chromatography|vauthors=Ettre LS|date=2008|publisher=Imperial College Press|others=John V. Hinshaw|isbn=978-1-86094-944-9|location=London|pages=246, 253–254, 372–373|oclc=294759403}}</ref>


==Life and Education==
==Life and education==


=== Early Life and Education ===
=== Early life and education ===
William H. Stein was born on 25 June 1911 in [[New York City]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=http://www.nap.edu/catalog/897|title=Biographical Memoirs: V.56|date=1987-01-01|publisher=National Academies Press|isbn=978-0-309-03693-1|location=Washington, D.C.|doi=10.17226/897}}</ref> His father, Fred M. Stein, was a businessman who retired early to support local New York health organizations.<ref name=":0" /> His mother, Beatrice Borg Stein, was a children’s rights activist who developed afterschool activities.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Gillispie|first=Charles|title=Complete dictionary of scientific biography|last2=Lawrence|first2=Holmes|last3=Koertge|first3=Noretta|publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons|year=2008|location=Detroit, Michigan|pages=851–855}}</ref> Staunch advocates for the welfare of society, Stein’s parents fostered his interests in the life sciences from a young age.<ref name=":0" /> As a child, Stein attended the recently established “progressive” Lincoln School which was sponsored by the [[Teachers College, Columbia University|Teachers College of Columbia University]]; there, he was able to explore the natural sciences through field trips and science projects.<ref name=":0" /> At the age of sixteen, Stein was transferred to the [[Phillips Exeter Academy]] in [[New England]] to prepare for higher education.<ref name=":0" />
William H. Stein was born on June 25, 1911 in [[New York City]]<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=http://www.nap.edu/catalog/897|title=Biographical Memoirs: V.56|date=1987-01-01|publisher=National Academies Press|isbn=978-0-309-03693-1|location=Washington, D.C.|doi=10.17226/897}}</ref> into a [[Jews|Jewish]] family.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jewish Nobel Prize Winners in Chemistry |url=https://www.jinfo.org/Nobels_Chemistry.html |access-date=2023-03-30 |website=www.jinfo.org}}</ref> His father, Fred M. Stein, was a businessman who retired early to support local New York health organizations.<ref name=":0" /> His mother, Beatrice Borg Stein, was a children's rights activist who developed afterschool activities.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last1=Gillispie|first1=Charles|title=Complete dictionary of scientific biography|last2=Lawrence|first2=Holmes|last3=Koertge|first3=Noretta|publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons|year=2008|location=Detroit, Michigan|pages=851–855}}</ref> Staunch advocates for the welfare of society, Stein's parents fostered his interests in the life sciences from a young age.<ref name=":0" /> As a child, Stein attended the recently established "progressive" Lincoln School which was sponsored by the [[Teachers College, Columbia University|Teachers College of Columbia University]]; there, he was able to explore the natural sciences through field trips and science projects.<ref name=":0" /> At the age of sixteen, Stein was transferred to the [[Phillips Exeter Academy]] in [[New England]] to prepare for higher education.<ref name=":0" />


In 1936, during his graduate studies at Columbia University, William H. Stein married Phoebe Hockstader.<ref name=":0" /> They had three sons together: William H. Stein, Jr., David F. Stein, and Robert J. Stein. Stein lived with his family in [[New York (state)|New York]] the rest of his life—mainly in [[Manhattan]] and briefly in [[Scarsdale, New York]].<ref name=":0" />
In 1936, during his graduate studies at Columbia University, William H. Stein married Phoebe Hockstader.<ref name=":0" /> They had three sons together: William H. Stein, Jr., David F. Stein, and Robert J. Stein. Stein lived with his family in [[New York (state)|New York]] the rest of his life—mainly in [[Manhattan]] and briefly in [[Scarsdale, New York]].<ref name=":0" />
Line 31: Line 34:
William H. Stein began his higher education as a chemistry major at [[Harvard University]] in 1929.<ref name=":0" /> He spent one year as a graduate student at Harvard University before transferring to the Department of Biological Chemistry at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, [[Columbia University]], in 1934 to focus on [[biochemistry]].<ref name=":0" /> [[Hans Thacher Clarke|Hans Thatcher Clarke]], the chairman of the department at the time, was collecting many talented graduate students who would become the distinguished biochemists of the early twentieth century.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> In 1937, Stein completed his thesis on the amino acid composition of [[elastin]], earning his Ph.D.<ref name=":0" /> Stein was introduced to potassium trioxalatochromate and ammonium rhodanilate by [[Max Bergmann]], a Jewish-German biochemist who fled to the United States in 1934 under threat of Nazi occupation and worked in a laboratory at the [[Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research|Rockefeller Institute]].<ref name=":2" /> He used these two precipitating agents to isolate the amino acids [[glycine]] and [[proline]], respectively, for his research on elastin.<ref name=":2" /> With the conclusion of his academic career, Stein went on to work under Bergmann.<ref name=":0" />
William H. Stein began his higher education as a chemistry major at [[Harvard University]] in 1929.<ref name=":0" /> He spent one year as a graduate student at Harvard University before transferring to the Department of Biological Chemistry at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, [[Columbia University]], in 1934 to focus on [[biochemistry]].<ref name=":0" /> [[Hans Thacher Clarke|Hans Thatcher Clarke]], the chairman of the department at the time, was collecting many talented graduate students who would become the distinguished biochemists of the early twentieth century.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> In 1937, Stein completed his thesis on the amino acid composition of [[elastin]], earning his Ph.D.<ref name=":0" /> Stein was introduced to potassium trioxalatochromate and ammonium rhodanilate by [[Max Bergmann]], a Jewish-German biochemist who fled to the United States in 1934 under threat of Nazi occupation and worked in a laboratory at the [[Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research|Rockefeller Institute]].<ref name=":2" /> He used these two precipitating agents to isolate the amino acids [[glycine]] and [[proline]], respectively, for his research on elastin.<ref name=":2" /> With the conclusion of his academic career, Stein went on to work under Bergmann.<ref name=":0" />


=== Late Life and Death ===
=== Later life and death ===


William H. Stein and his wife traveled around the world and hosted many prominent scientists in their own home in New York City throughout his scientific career.<ref name=":0" /> In addition to Stein’s long-term professorship at Rockefeller Institute, he served as a visiting professor to the [[University of Chicago]] in 1961 and [[Harvard University]] in 1964.<ref name=":2" /> Stein also lectured at the [[Washington University in St. Louis]] and [[Haverford College]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|title=The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1972/stein/biographical/|access-date=2021-04-16|website=NobelPrize.org|language=en-US}}</ref>
William H. Stein and his wife traveled around the world and hosted many prominent scientists in their own home in New York City throughout his scientific career.<ref name=":0" /> In addition to Stein's long-term professorship at Rockefeller Institute, he served as a visiting professor to the [[University of Chicago]] in 1961 and [[Harvard University]] in 1964.<ref name=":2" /> Stein also lectured at the [[Washington University in St. Louis]] and [[Haverford College]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|title=The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1972/stein/biographical/|access-date=2021-04-16|website=NobelPrize.org|language=en-US}}</ref>


In 1969, Stein suffered from sudden paralysis, diagnosed as [[Guillain–Barré syndrome|Guillain-Barré syndrome]], after developing a fever several days prior during a symposium in [[Copenhagen]].<ref name=":0" /> Despite remaining [[Tetraplegia|quadriplegic]] the rest of his life, Stein’s colleagues alleged that his spirit and sense of humor endured.<ref name=":0" /> He continued to be a guiding presence at the Rockefeller Institute to his younger colleagues and their work on the study of [[Ribonuclease|RNase]].<ref name=":0" /> At the age of sixty-eight, Stein experienced unexpected heart failure.<ref name=":0" /> William H. Stein died 2 February 1980 in New York City.<ref name=":0" />
In 1969, Stein experienced sudden paralysis, diagnosed as [[Guillain–Barré syndrome]], after developing a fever several days prior during a symposium in [[Copenhagen]].<ref name=":0" /> Despite remaining [[Tetraplegia|quadriplegic]] the rest of his life, Stein's colleagues alleged that his spirit and sense of humor endured.<ref name=":0" /> He continued to be a guiding presence at the Rockefeller Institute to his younger colleagues and their work on the study of [[Ribonuclease|RNase]].<ref name=":0" /> At the age of sixty-eight, Stein experienced unexpected heart failure.<ref name=":0" /> William H. Stein died February 2, 1980 in New York City.<ref name=":0" />


==Scientific career==
==Scientific career==


===Early Work===
===Early work===
Following the completion of his formal education, Stein became a researcher under Bergmann at Rockefeller Institute, where much of his most important work was done.<ref name="Nobel">{{cite web|title=William H. Stein - Biographical|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1972/stein-autobio.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Stanford Moore]] joined Bergmann's lab in 1939, where he and Stein began research focusing on amino acids.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal| vauthors = Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL |date=March 2005|title=The Fruits of Collaboration: Chromatography, Amino Acid Analyzers, and the Chemical Structure of Ribonuclease by William H. Stein and Stanford Moore |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry|volume=280|issue=9|pages=e6–e8|doi=10.1016/s0021-9258(19)30642-8|issn=0021-9258|doi-access=free}}</ref> According to Moore, "During the early years of our cooperation, Stein and I worked out a system of collaboration that lasted for a lifetime."<ref name=":0" />
Following the completion of his formal education, Stein became a researcher under Bergmann at Rockefeller Institute, where much of his most important work was done.<ref name=":3" /> [[Stanford Moore]] joined Bergmann's lab in 1939, where he and Stein began research focusing on amino acids.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal| vauthors = Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL |date=March 2005|title=The Fruits of Collaboration: Chromatography, Amino Acid Analyzers, and the Chemical Structure of Ribonuclease by William H. Stein and Stanford Moore |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry|volume=280|issue=9|pages=e6–e8|doi=10.1016/s0021-9258(19)30642-8|issn=0021-9258|doi-access=free}}</ref> According to Moore, "During the early years of our cooperation, Stein and I worked out a system of collaboration that lasted for a lifetime."<ref name=":0" /> Their work in this area was disrupted with the beginning of [[World War II]], and they temporarily parted ways to aid the war efforts, Stein staying with Bergmann to research the molecular scale effect of [[blister agent]]s on the human body.<ref name=":02" /> They began collaborating again, however, after Bergmann died in 1944 and they were given an opportunity by the Director of the Rockefeller Institute, [[Herbert Spencer Gasser|Herbert S. Gasser]], to continue Bergmann's work in amino acids.<ref name=":02" />

Their work in this area was disrupted with the beginning of [[World War II]] and they temporarily parted ways to aid the war efforts, Stein staying with Bergmann to research the molecular scale effect of [[blister agent]]s on the human body.<ref name=":02" /> They began collaborating again, however, after Bergmann died in 1944 and they were given an opportunity by the Director of the Rockefeller Institute, [[Herbert Spencer Gasser|Herbert S. Gasser]], to continue Bergmann’s work in amino acids.<ref name=":02" />


===Chromatography===
===Chromatography===
Stein and Moore developed a method to quantify and separate amino acids with [[column chromatography]], using [[potato starch]] as the stationary phase.<ref name=":02" /> The [[Fraction (chemistry)|fractions]], originally collected manually, were collected in their newly developed automated fraction collector, and the amount of each amino acid was determined by an adjusted [[color reaction]] with [[ninhydrin]].<ref name=":4" /> They began testing other methods of separation, such as [[Ion chromatography|ion exchange chromatography]], to reduce the analysis time, as it took two weeks to analyze one protein using the starch columns.<ref name=":02" /> Ion exchange chromatography reduced the time to 5 days during initial experiments, and eventually Stein and Moore whittled the process down even further with the help of Daryl Spackman, which resulted in the first automatic amino acid analyzer.<ref name=":02" /> Along with their well-known work in protein sequences, this automatic amino acid analyzer was also utilized in Stein’s study of amino acids in human urine<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Stein WH | title = A chromatographic investigation of the amino acid constituents of normal urine | journal = The Journal of Biological Chemistry | volume = 201 | issue = 1 | pages = 45–58 | date = March 1953 | pmid = 13044774 }}</ref> and blood plasma.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Brigham MP, Stein WH, Moore S | title = The concentrations of cysteine and cystine in human blood plasma | journal = The Journal of Clinical Investigation | volume = 39 | issue = 11 | pages = 1633–8 | date = November 1960 | pmid = 16695834 | pmc = 293403 | doi = 10.1172/JCI104186 }}</ref>
Stein and Moore developed a method to quantify and separate amino acids with [[column chromatography]], using [[potato starch]] as the stationary phase.<ref name=":02" /> The [[Fraction (chemistry)|fractions]], originally collected manually, were collected in their newly developed automated fraction collector, and the amount of each amino acid was determined by an adjusted [[color reaction]] with [[ninhydrin]].<ref name=":4" /> They began testing other methods of separation, such as [[Ion chromatography|ion exchange chromatography]], to reduce the analysis time, as it took two weeks to analyze one protein using the starch columns.<ref name=":02" /> Ion exchange chromatography reduced the time to 5 days during initial experiments, and eventually Stein and Moore whittled the process down even further with the help of Daryl Spackman, which resulted in the first automatic amino acid analyzer.<ref name=":02" /> Along with their well-known work in protein sequences, this automatic amino acid analyzer was also utilized in Stein's study of amino acids in human urine<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Stein WH | title = A chromatographic investigation of the amino acid constituents of normal urine | journal = The Journal of Biological Chemistry | volume = 201 | issue = 1 | pages = 45–58 | date = March 1953 | doi = 10.1016/S0021-9258(18)71347-1 | pmid = 13044774 | doi-access = free }}</ref> and blood plasma.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Brigham MP, Stein WH, Moore S | title = The concentrations of cysteine and cystine in human blood plasma | journal = The Journal of Clinical Investigation | volume = 39 | issue = 11 | pages = 1633–8 | date = November 1960 | pmid = 16695834 | pmc = 293403 | doi = 10.1172/JCI104186 }}</ref>


===Determination of Protein Sequences===
===Determination of protein sequences===
With their success in improving the analysis time for amino acids, Stein and Moore began to determine the structure of an entire protein molecule, specifically bovine ribonuclease, in the early 1950s.<ref>{{Cite journal| vauthors = Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL |date=2005-12-05|title=The Elucidation of the Structure of Ribonuclease by Stanford Moore and William H. Stein |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry|language=English|volume=280|issue=50|pages=e47–e48|doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(20)58994-1|issn=0021-9258|doi-access=free}}</ref> They determined the entire sequence of ribonuclease by 1960.<ref>{{Cite book | vauthors = Rothenberg M |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/559981900|title=The history of science in the United States: an encyclopedia |date=2001 |publisher=Garland Pub |isbn=978-0-203-90280-6|location=New York|oclc=559981900}}</ref> This sequence combined with [[X-ray crystallography|X-ray analysis]] of the crystallized ribonuclease lead to the determination of the nuclease’s active site.<ref>{{Cite web|title=William H. Stein: Nobel Lecture|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1972/stein/lecture/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-04-23|website=NobelPrize.org|language=en-US}}</ref> Stein won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1972 with Moore and [[Christian Boehmer Anfinsen]], for their work on ribonuclease and "for their contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the ribonuclease molecule."<ref name=":1" />
With their success in improving the analysis time for amino acids, Stein and Moore began to determine the structure of an entire protein molecule, specifically bovine ribonuclease, in the early 1950s.<ref>{{Cite journal| vauthors = Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL |date=2005-12-05|title=The Elucidation of the Structure of Ribonuclease by Stanford Moore and William H. Stein |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry|language=English|volume=280|issue=50|pages=e47–e48|doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(20)58994-1|issn=0021-9258|doi-access=free}}</ref> They determined the entire sequence of ribonuclease by 1960.<ref>{{Cite book | vauthors = Rothenberg M |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/559981900|title=The history of science in the United States: an encyclopedia |date=2001 |publisher=Garland Pub |isbn=978-0-203-90280-6|location=New York|oclc=559981900}}</ref> This sequence combined with [[X-ray crystallography|X-ray analysis]] of the crystallized ribonuclease lead to the determination of the nuclease's active site.<ref>{{Cite web|title=William H. Stein: Nobel Lecture|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1972/stein/lecture/|access-date=2021-04-23|website=NobelPrize.org|language=en-US}}</ref> Stein won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1972 with Moore and [[Christian Boehmer Anfinsen]], for their work on ribonuclease and "for their contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the ribonuclease molecule."<ref name=":1" />


== Awards and Honors ==
== Awards and honors ==


=== Awards ===
=== Awards ===
Line 61: Line 62:


=== Honors ===
=== Honors ===
William H. Stein received numerous honors from Columbia University and the Albert Einstein Collage of Medicine of Yeshiva University, including:<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> D.Sc. ''honoris causa,'' Columbia University (1973), D.Sc. ''honoris causa,'' Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (1973), and the Award of Excellence Medal, Columbia University Graduate Faculty and Alumni Association (1973).
William H. Stein received numerous honors from Columbia University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, including:<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> D.Sc. ''honoris causa,'' Columbia University (1973), D.Sc. ''honoris causa,'' Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (1973), and the Award of Excellence Medal, Columbia University Graduate Faculty and Alumni Association (1973).


=== Scientific Societies ===
=== Scientific societies ===
William H. Stein was a member of several scientific societies, including the:<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> National Academy of Sciences (elected to membership in 1960), American Academy of Arts and Sciences (elected to membership in 1960), American Society of Biological Chemists, Biochemical Society of London, American Chemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Harvey Society of New York.
William H. Stein was a member of several scientific societies, including the:<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> National Academy of Sciences (elected to membership in 1960), American Academy of Arts and Sciences (elected to membership in 1960), American Society of Biological Chemists, Biochemical Society of London, American Chemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Harvey Society of New York.

== See also ==

* [[List of Jewish Nobel laureates]]


== References ==
== References ==
Line 70: Line 75:


== Further reading ==
== Further reading ==

{{refbegin}}
* {{cite journal | vauthors = Moore S | title = William H. Stein | journal = The Journal of Biological Chemistry | volume = 255 | issue = 20 | pages = 9517–8 | date = October 1980 | pmid = 7000757 | url = http://www.jbc.org/cgi/reprint/255/20/9517.pdf | author-link = Stanford Moore }}
* {{Cite journal|last=Moore|first=Stanford|date=October 1980|title=William H. Stein|url=https://www.jbc.org/article/S0021-9258(18)43417-5/pdf|journal=The Journal of Biological Chemistry|volume=255|issue=20|pages=9517–9518|doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(18)43417-5|pmid=7000757|doi-access=free}}
{{refend}}


== External links ==
== External links ==
* {{Cite web|title=Form and Function: The First Sequence of an Enzyme, Ribonuclease|url=https://centennial.rucares.org/index.php?page=Ribonuclease|website=The Rockefeller University}}
* {{Nobelprize}} with the Nobel Lecture, December 11, 1972 ''The Chemical Structures of Pancreatic Ribonuclease and Deoxyribonuclease''
*{{Nobelprize}} with the Nobel Lecture, December 11, 1972 ''The Chemical Structures of Pancreatic Ribonuclease and Deoxyribonuclease''


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
Line 86: Line 91:
[[Category:Nobel laureates in Chemistry]]
[[Category:Nobel laureates in Chemistry]]
[[Category:American Nobel laureates]]
[[Category:American Nobel laureates]]
[[Category:Jewish Nobel laureates]]
[[Category:20th-century American biochemists]]
⚫
[[Category:American biochemists]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:Jewish American scientists]]
[[Category:Jewish American scientists]]
[[Category:Jewish chemists]]
[[Category:Jewish chemists]]
[[Category:Jewish Nobel laureates]]
[[Category:Columbia University alumni]]
[[Category:Columbia University alumni]]
[[Category:Rockefeller University people]]
[[Category:Rockefeller University faculty]]
[[Category:Journal of Biological Chemistry editors]]
⚫
[[Category:American scientists with disabilities]]
[[Category:University of Chicago faculty]]
[[Category:Harvard University faculty]]
[[Category:Washington University in St. Louis faculty]]
[[Category:Haverford College faculty]]

Latest revision as of 20:34, 25 June 2024

William Howard Stein
Born(1911-06-25)June 25, 1911
New York City, New York, USA
DiedFebruary 2, 1980(1980-02-02) (aged 68)
New York City, New York, USA
EducationHarvard University
Columbia University
Spouse(s)Phoebe Hockstader (1936–1980; his death; 3 children)[1] (1913–1989)
AwardsNobel Prize in Chemistry (1972)
Scientific career
FieldsBiochemistry
InstitutionsRockefeller University, University of Chicago
ThesisThe Composition of Elastin (1938)
Doctoral advisorHans Thacher Clarke

William Howard Stein (June 25, 1911 – February 2, 1980) was an American biochemist who collaborated in the determination of the ribonuclease sequence, as well as how its structure relates to catalytic activity, earning a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1972 for his work.[2] Stein was also involved in the invention of the automatic amino acid analyzer, an advancement in chromatography that opened the door to modern methods of chromatography, such as liquid chromatography and gas chromatography.[3]

Life and education

[edit]

Early life and education

[edit]

William H. Stein was born on June 25, 1911 in New York City[4] into a Jewish family.[5] His father, Fred M. Stein, was a businessman who retired early to support local New York health organizations.[4] His mother, Beatrice Borg Stein, was a children's rights activist who developed afterschool activities.[4][6] Staunch advocates for the welfare of society, Stein's parents fostered his interests in the life sciences from a young age.[4] As a child, Stein attended the recently established "progressive" Lincoln School which was sponsored by the Teachers College of Columbia University; there, he was able to explore the natural sciences through field trips and science projects.[4] At the age of sixteen, Stein was transferred to the Phillips Exeter Academy in New England to prepare for higher education.[4]

In 1936, during his graduate studies at Columbia University, William H. Stein married Phoebe Hockstader.[4] They had three sons together: William H. Stein, Jr., David F. Stein, and Robert J. Stein. Stein lived with his family in New York the rest of his life—mainly in Manhattan and briefly in Scarsdale, New York.[4]

Academic career

[edit]

William H. Stein began his higher education as a chemistry major at Harvard University in 1929.[4] He spent one year as a graduate student at Harvard University before transferring to the Department of Biological Chemistry at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, in 1934 to focus on biochemistry.[4] Hans Thatcher Clarke, the chairman of the department at the time, was collecting many talented graduate students who would become the distinguished biochemists of the early twentieth century.[4][6] In 1937, Stein completed his thesis on the amino acid composition of elastin, earning his Ph.D.[4] Stein was introduced to potassium trioxalatochromate and ammonium rhodanilate by Max Bergmann, a Jewish-German biochemist who fled to the United States in 1934 under threat of Nazi occupation and worked in a laboratory at the Rockefeller Institute.[6] He used these two precipitating agents to isolate the amino acids glycine and proline, respectively, for his research on elastin.[6] With the conclusion of his academic career, Stein went on to work under Bergmann.[4]

Later life and death

[edit]

William H. Stein and his wife traveled around the world and hosted many prominent scientists in their own home in New York City throughout his scientific career.[4] In addition to Stein's long-term professorship at Rockefeller Institute, he served as a visiting professor to the University of Chicago in 1961 and Harvard University in 1964.[6] Stein also lectured at the Washington University in St. Louis and Haverford College.[7]

In 1969, Stein experienced sudden paralysis, diagnosed as Guillain–Barré syndrome, after developing a fever several days prior during a symposium in Copenhagen.[4] Despite remaining quadriplegic the rest of his life, Stein's colleagues alleged that his spirit and sense of humor endured.[4] He continued to be a guiding presence at the Rockefeller Institute to his younger colleagues and their work on the study of RNase.[4] At the age of sixty-eight, Stein experienced unexpected heart failure.[4] William H. Stein died February 2, 1980 in New York City.[4]

Scientific career

[edit]

Early work

[edit]

Following the completion of his formal education, Stein became a researcher under Bergmann at Rockefeller Institute, where much of his most important work was done.[7] Stanford Moore joined Bergmann's lab in 1939, where he and Stein began research focusing on amino acids.[8] According to Moore, "During the early years of our cooperation, Stein and I worked out a system of collaboration that lasted for a lifetime."[4] Their work in this area was disrupted with the beginning of World War II, and they temporarily parted ways to aid the war efforts, Stein staying with Bergmann to research the molecular scale effect of blister agents on the human body.[8] They began collaborating again, however, after Bergmann died in 1944 and they were given an opportunity by the Director of the Rockefeller Institute, Herbert S. Gasser, to continue Bergmann's work in amino acids.[8]

Chromatography

[edit]

Stein and Moore developed a method to quantify and separate amino acids with column chromatography, using potato starch as the stationary phase.[8] The fractions, originally collected manually, were collected in their newly developed automated fraction collector, and the amount of each amino acid was determined by an adjusted color reaction with ninhydrin.[3] They began testing other methods of separation, such as ion exchange chromatography, to reduce the analysis time, as it took two weeks to analyze one protein using the starch columns.[8] Ion exchange chromatography reduced the time to 5 days during initial experiments, and eventually Stein and Moore whittled the process down even further with the help of Daryl Spackman, which resulted in the first automatic amino acid analyzer.[8] Along with their well-known work in protein sequences, this automatic amino acid analyzer was also utilized in Stein's study of amino acids in human urine[9] and blood plasma.[10]

Determination of protein sequences

[edit]

With their success in improving the analysis time for amino acids, Stein and Moore began to determine the structure of an entire protein molecule, specifically bovine ribonuclease, in the early 1950s.[11] They determined the entire sequence of ribonuclease by 1960.[12] This sequence combined with X-ray analysis of the crystallized ribonuclease lead to the determination of the nuclease's active site.[13] Stein won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1972 with Moore and Christian Boehmer Anfinsen, for their work on ribonuclease and "for their contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the ribonuclease molecule."[2]

Awards and honors

[edit]

Awards

[edit]

William H. Stein received a number of awards for his contributions to the biochemical field, including:[4][7]

  • American Chemical Society Award in Chromatography and Electrophoresis (1964) with Stanford Moore
  • Richards Medal of the American Chemical Society (1972) with Stanford Moore
  • Kaj Linderstrøm-Lang Award, Copenhagen (1972) with Stanford Moore
  • The Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1972) with Stanford Moore and Christian B. Anfinsen

Honors

[edit]

William H. Stein received numerous honors from Columbia University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, including:[4][6] D.Sc. honoris causa, Columbia University (1973), D.Sc. honoris causa, Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (1973), and the Award of Excellence Medal, Columbia University Graduate Faculty and Alumni Association (1973).

Scientific societies

[edit]

William H. Stein was a member of several scientific societies, including the:[6][7] National Academy of Sciences (elected to membership in 1960), American Academy of Arts and Sciences (elected to membership in 1960), American Society of Biological Chemists, Biochemical Society of London, American Chemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Harvey Society of New York.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Phoebe H. Stein, 75, Health-Care Advocate". The New York Times. 1989-01-03.
  2. ^ a b "The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  3. ^ a b Ettre LS (2008). Chapters in the evolution of chromatography. John V. Hinshaw. London: Imperial College Press. pp. 246, 253–254, 372–373. ISBN 978-1-86094-944-9. OCLC 294759403.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Biographical Memoirs: V.56. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. 1987-01-01. doi:10.17226/897. ISBN 978-0-309-03693-1.
  5. ^ "Jewish Nobel Prize Winners in Chemistry". www.jinfo.org. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Gillispie, Charles; Lawrence, Holmes; Koertge, Noretta (2008). Complete dictionary of scientific biography. Detroit, Michigan: Charles Scribner's Sons. pp. 851–855.
  7. ^ a b c d "The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL (March 2005). "The Fruits of Collaboration: Chromatography, Amino Acid Analyzers, and the Chemical Structure of Ribonuclease by William H. Stein and Stanford Moore". Journal of Biological Chemistry. 280 (9): e6–e8. doi:10.1016/s0021-9258(19)30642-8. ISSN 0021-9258.
  9. ^ Stein WH (March 1953). "A chromatographic investigation of the amino acid constituents of normal urine". The Journal of Biological Chemistry. 201 (1): 45–58. doi:10.1016/S0021-9258(18)71347-1. PMID 13044774.
  10. ^ Brigham MP, Stein WH, Moore S (November 1960). "The concentrations of cysteine and cystine in human blood plasma". The Journal of Clinical Investigation. 39 (11): 1633–8. doi:10.1172/JCI104186. PMC 293403. PMID 16695834.
  11. ^ Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL (2005-12-05). "The Elucidation of the Structure of Ribonuclease by Stanford Moore and William H. Stein". Journal of Biological Chemistry. 280 (50): e47–e48. doi:10.1016/S0021-9258(20)58994-1. ISSN 0021-9258.
  12. ^ Rothenberg M (2001). The history of science in the United States: an encyclopedia. New York: Garland Pub. ISBN 978-0-203-90280-6. OCLC 559981900.
  13. ^ "William H. Stein: Nobel Lecture". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2021-04-23.

Further reading

[edit]
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=William_Howard_Stein&oldid=1230987779"