The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded since 1901. Its first laureate was Jacob van't Hoff. This scientist received an award for the laws of osmotic pressure and chemical dynamics discovered by him. Of course, it is impossible to tell about all the laureates within the framework of one article. We will talk about the most famous ones, as well as those who have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in the past few years.
Ernest Rutherford
One of the most famous chemists is Ernest Rutherford. He received the Nobel Prize in 1908 for his research on the decay of radioactive elements. The years of the life of this scientist are 1871-1937. He is an English physicist and chemist born in New Zealand. Due to his success while studying at Nelson College, he received a scholarship that allowed him to go to Christchurch, the New Zealand city where Canterbury College was located. In 1894, Rutherford became a bachelor of science. After some time, the scientist was awarded a scholarship from the University of Cambridge in England and moved to this country.
In 1898, Rutherford began to carry out important experiments related towith radioactive uranium. After some time, two of its types were discovered by him: alpha rays and beta rays. The former penetrate only a short distance, while the latter penetrate much more. After some time, Rutherford found out that thorium emits a special radioactive gaseous product. He called this phenomenon "emanation" (emission).
New research has shown that actinium and radium also emanate. Rutherford, on the basis of his discoveries, came to important conclusions. He found that alpha and beta rays emit all radioactive elements. In addition, their radioactivity decreases after a certain period of time. Based on the findings, an important assumption could be made. All radioactive elements known to science, as the scientist concluded, are included in the same family of atoms, and the decrease in radioactivity can be taken as the basis for their classification.
Marie Curie (Sklodowska)
The first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was Marie Curie. This important event for science took place in 1911. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to her for the discovery of polonium and radium, the isolation of radium, and for the study of the compounds and nature of the latter element. Maria was born in Poland, after some time she moved to France. The years of her life are 1867-1934. Curie won the Nobel Prize not only in chemistry, but also in physics (in 1903, together with Pierre Curie and Henri Becquerel).
Marie Curie had to face the fact that women in her timethe path to science was practically closed. They were not admitted to Warsaw University. In addition, the Curie family was poor. However, Maria managed to graduate in Paris.
The most important achievements of Marie Curie
Henri Becquerel discovered in 1896 that uranium compounds emit radiation that can penetrate deeply. Becquerel radiation, unlike that discovered by W. Roentgen in 1895, was not the result of excitation from some external source. It was an intrinsic property of uranium. Mary was interested in this phenomenon. In early 1898, she began to study it. The researcher tried to determine if there are other substances that have the ability to emit these rays. In December 1898, Pierre and Marie Curie discovered 2 new elements. They were named radium and polonium (in honor of Mary's homeland of Poland). This was followed by work on their isolation and study of their properties. In 1910, together with André Debirne, Maria isolated radium metal in its pure form. Thus, the research cycle started 12 years ago was completed.
Linus Carl Pauling
This man is one of the greatest chemists. He received the Nobel Prize in 1954 for studying the nature of the chemical bond, as well as for using it to elucidate the structure of compounds.
Pauling years - 1901-1994. He was born in the USA, in the state of Oregon (Portland). As a researcher, Pauling studied X-ray crystallography for a long time. He was interested in how rays pass through a crystal and a characteristicpicture. From this drawing it was possible to determine the atomic structure of the corresponding substance. Using this method, the scientist studied the nature of bonds in benzene, as well as in other aromatic compounds.
In 1928, Pauling created the theory of hybridization (resonance) of chemical bonds that occurs in aromatic compounds. In 1934, the scientist turned his attention to biochemistry, in particular to the biochemistry of proteins. Together with A. Mirsky, he created the theory of protein function and structure. Together with C. Corwell, this scientist studied the effect of oxygen saturation (oxygenation) on the magnetic properties of the hemoglobin protein. In 1942, a researcher was able to change the chemical structure of globulins (proteins found in the blood). In 1951, Pauling, together with R. Corey, published a work on the molecular structure of proteins. It was the result of 14 years of work. Using X-ray crystallography to study proteins in muscle, hair, hair, nails and other tissues, scientists have made an important discovery. They found that amino acid chains in proteins are twisted into a helix. This was a great advance in biochemistry.
S. Hinshelwood and N. Semenov
You probably want to know if there are Russian Nobel Prize winners in chemistry. Although some of our compatriots were nominated for this award, only N. Semenov received it. Together with Hinshelwood, he was awarded the Prize for Research on the Mechanism of Chemical Reactions in 1956.
Hinshelwood - English scientist (years of life - 1897-1967). His main work was related to the study of chainreactions. He investigated homogeneous analysis as well as the mechanism of reactions of this type.
Semenov Nikolai Nikolaevich (years of life - 1896-1986) - Russian chemist and physicist originally from the city of Saratov. The first scientific problem that interested him was the ionization of gases. The scientist, while still a university student, wrote the first article on collisions between molecules and electrons. After some time, he began to study more deeply the processes of recombination and dissociation. In addition, he became interested in the molecular aspects of vapor condensation and adsorption occurring on a solid surface. The research carried out by him made it possible to find the relationship between the temperature of the surface from which condensation is carried out and the vapor density. In 1934, the scientist published a paper in which he proved that many reactions, including polymerization, proceed using the mechanism of a branched or chain reaction.
Robert Burns Woodward
All Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have made great contributions to science, but R. Woodward stands out among them in particular. His achievements are very important even today. This scientist was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1965. He received it for his contributions to the field of organic synthesis. The years of Robert's life are 1917-1979. He was born in the USA, in the American city of Boston, located in the state of Massachusetts.
Woodward made his first achievement in the field of chemistry during World War II, when he was a consultant to the Polaroid Corporation. Because of the war, there was a shortage of quinine. It is an antimalarial drug that was also used in the manufacture of lenses. Woodward and W. Doering, his colleague, using readily available materials and standard equipment, completed the synthesis of quinine after 14 months of work.
Three years later, together with Schramm, this scientist created a protein analog by combining amino acids into a long chain. The resulting polypeptides have been used in the production of artificial antibiotics and plastics. In addition, with their help, protein metabolism began to be studied. Woodward in 1951 began to work on the synthesis of steroids. Among the obtained compounds were lanosterol, chlorophyll, reserpine, lysergic acid, vitamin B12, colchicine, prostaglandin F2a. Subsequently, many of the compounds obtained by him and the employees of the Ciba Corporation Institute, of which he was the director, began to be used in industry. Nephalosporin C was one of the most important of these. It is a penicillin-type antibiotic that is used against infectious diseases caused by bacteria.
Our list of Nobel Laureates in Chemistry will be updated with the names of scientists who have received it in the 21st century, in the second decade.
A. Suzuki, E. Negishi, R. Heck
These researchers were awarded for developing new ways to connect carbon atoms to each other to create complex molecules. They were awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Hyuk and Negishi are Americans, while Akiro Suzuki is a Japanese citizen. Their goal was to create complex organic molecules. At school we learn aboutthat organic compounds have carbon atoms in their composition, which form the skeleton of the molecule. For a long time, the problem of scientists was that carbon atoms are hard to combine with other atoms. Due to the catalyst made of palladium, it was possible to solve this problem. Under the action of the catalyst, carbon atoms began to interact with each other, forming complex organic structures. These processes were studied by this year's Nobel Prize winners in chemistry. Almost simultaneously, reactions named after these scientists were carried out.
R. Lefkowitz, M. Karplus, B. Kobilka
Lefkowitz (pictured above), Kobilka and Karplus are the winners of the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The award went to three of these scientists for their study of G-protein-coupled receptors. Robert Lefkowitz is a US citizen born on April 15, 1943. The main part of his research is devoted to the work of bioreceptors and the transformation of their signals. Lefkowitz described in detail the functional features, structure and sequence of β-adrenergic receptors, as well as 2 types of regulatory proteins: β-arrestins and GRK kinases. This scientist in the 1980s, together with colleagues, cloned the gene responsible for the functioning of the β-adrenergic receptor.
B. Kobilka is a native of the USA. He was born in Little Falls, Minnesota. After graduation, the researcher worked under the supervision of Lefkowitz.
The 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was also awarded to M. Karplus. He was born in Vienna in 1930. Karplus wascomes from a Jewish family who had to move to the United States, fleeing the persecution of the Nazis. The main field of research of this scientist was nuclear magnetic spectroscopy, quantum chemistry and the kinetics of chemical processes.
M. Karplus, M. Levitt, A. Warshel
Now let's move on to the 2013 award winners. Scientists Karplus (pictured below), Warshel and Levitt received it for their models of complex chemical systems.
M. Levitt was born in South Africa in 1947. When he was 16, Michael's family moved to the UK. In London, he entered King's College in 1967 and then continued his studies at the University of Cambridge. His work at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology of this university is connected with the creation of models of the spatial structures of tRNA. Michael is considered one of the founders of computer modeling and studying the structures of various protein molecules (mainly proteins).
The 2013 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was also awarded to Ari Warschel. He was born in Palestine in 1940. In 1958-62. he served as a captain in the Israel Defense Forces and then began his studies at the Jerusalem Institute. In 1970-72. he worked at the Weizmann Institute as an assistant professor, and since 1991 became a professor of biology and chemistry in Southern California. Warshall is considered one of the founders of computational enzymology, a branch of biology. He was engaged in the study of the mechanisms and structure of the catalytic action, as well as the structure of enzyme molecules.
Sh. Hell, E. Betzig and W. Merner
The 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Merner, Betzig and Hell. These scientists have created new methods of microscopy that surpass the capabilities of the light microscope we are used to. The results of their work allow us to consider the paths of molecules inside the cells of living organisms. For example, thanks to these methods, it becomes possible to monitor the behavior of proteins responsible for the occurrence of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. Currently, the research of these scientists is increasingly being used in science and medicine.
Hell was born in 1962 in Romania. He is now a German citizen. Eric Betzig was born in 1960 in Michigan. William Merner was born in 1953 in California.
Hell has been working on STED microscopy based on spontaneous suppressed emission since the 1990s. The first laser in it is excited until the appearance of a fluorescent glow registered by the receiver. Another laser is used to improve the resolution of the device. Merner and Betzig, Hell's colleagues, independently of each other, laid the foundations for yet another type of microscopy. We are talking about microscopy of single molecules.
T. Lindahl, P. Modric and Aziz Sanjar
The 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Swedish Lindahl, American Modric and Turk Sandjar. The scientists who shared the award independently explained and described the mechanisms by which cells "repair" DNA and protect genetic information from damage. This is why they were awarded the 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.year.
The scientific community in the 1960s was convinced that these molecules are extremely strong and remain virtually unchanged throughout life. Carrying out his research at the Karolinska Institute, the biochemist Lindahl (born in 1938) showed that various defects accumulate in the work of DNA. This means that there must be natural mechanisms by which the "repair" of DNA molecules is carried out. Lindahl in 1974 found an enzyme that removes damaged cytosine from them. In the 1980s and 1990s, a scientist who had moved to the UK by that time showed how glycosylase works. This is a special group of enzymes that work at the first stage of DNA repair. The scientist was able to reproduce this process in the laboratory (the so-called "excision repair").
Other 2015 Nobel Prize winners in Chemistry deserve attention. Aziz Sanjar was born in 1946 in Turkey. He received a medical degree in Istanbul, after which he worked for several years as a rural doctor. However, in 1973, Aziz became interested in biochemistry. The scientist was struck by the fact that after receiving a dose of ultraviolet radiation that is deadly for them, bacteria quickly restore their strength if irradiation is carried out in the blue spectrum of the visible range. Already in a laboratory in Texas, Sanjar identified and cloned the gene for an enzyme that is responsible for eliminating damage caused by ultraviolet radiation (photolyase). This discovery in the 1970s did not arouse much interest in American universities, and the scientist went to Yale. It was here that he described a second system for "repairing" cells after they had been exposed to ultraviolet light.
Paul Modric (born in 1946) was born in the USA (New Mexico). He discovered a way in which, in the process of cell division, errors that appeared in the DNA during division are corrected.
So we already know who won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. It remains only to guess who will be awarded this award next year, 2016. I would like to believe that in the near future, domestic scientists will also stand out, and new Nobel Prize winners in chemistry from Russia will appear.
