Ralph F. Hirschmann
University of Pennsylvania
May 6, 1922 - June 20, 2009
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Scientific Discipline: Chemistry Membership Type:
Member
(elected 1999)
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Chemist Ralph Hirschmann is credited with the first solution synthesis of an enzyme, having led the team that synthesized ribonuclease in 1969. During his tenure as head of Merck's Department of New Lead Discovery, he led the development of medications for an array of infectious diseases, high blood pressure, and elevated cholesterol levels, as well as other medical maladies.
Hirschmann immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1937 and graduated from Oberlin College in 1943, becoming a naturalized citizen a year later. In 1950 he earned his PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In 2000 President Bill Clinton presented Hirschmann with the National Medal of Science. Hirschmann was also inducted into the ACS Medicinal Chemistry Hall of Fame in the year of 2007.
