Robert Francis Furchgott (June 4, 1916 – May 19, 2009) was a Nobel Prize-winning American biochemist who contributed to the discovery of nitric oxide as a transient cellular signal in mammalian systems.
In 1978, Furchgott discovered a substance in endothelial cells that relaxes blood vessels, calling it endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF).[2] By 1986, he had worked out EDRF's nature and mechanism of action, and determined that EDRF was in fact nitric oxide (NO), an important compound in many aspects of cardiovascular physiology. This research is important in explaining a wide variety of neuronal, cardiovascular, and general physiologic processes of central importance in human health and disease.[3]
Furchgott was Jewish[15] and lived most of his married and career life in Woodmere, New York on Long Island. He was married to Lenore Mandelbaum (February 1915 – April 1983)[16] from 1941 until her death at age 68. They had three daughters: Jane, Terry, and Susan. His daughter, Susan, was an artist in the San Francisco counter-culture and co-founder of the Kerista Commune.
Anon. (2009) "Obituary: Robert Furchgott," The Telegraph (online), May 26, 2009, see,[19] accessed 11 August 2015.
Raju, T N (2000), "The Nobel chronicles. 1998: Robert Francis Furchgott (b 1911), Louis J Ignarro (b 1941), and Ferid Murad (b 1936).", Lancet, vol. 356, no. 9226 (published Jul 22, 2000), p. 346, doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(05)73635-7, PMID 11071225, S2CID 53221905
Rabelink, A J (1998), "Nobel prize in Medicine and Physiology 1998 for the discovery of the role of nitric oxide as a signalling molecule", Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde, vol. 142, no. 52 (published Dec 26, 1998), pp. 2828–30, PMID 10065255
Laufs, U; Erdmann, E (1998), "Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system. Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1998", Dtsch. Med. Wochenschr., vol. 123, no. 51–52 (published Dec 18, 1998), pp. 1562–5, doi:10.1055/s-0029-1237297, PMID 9893684, S2CID 68505199
Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "The Nobel Prize 1998 in physiology or medicine. Nitrogen oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Ugeskrift for Læger, vol. 160, no. 52 (published Dec 21, 1998), pp. 7571–8, PMID 9889673
Nielsen, T T; Sørensen, K E (1998), "Discovery of "endogenous nitroglycerin", NO, as cellular signal molecule", Ugeskrift for Læger, vol. 160, no. 52 (published Dec 21, 1998), p. 7567, PMID 9889670
Mitka, M (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize winners are announced: three discoverers of nitric oxide activity", JAMA, vol. 280, no. 19 (published Nov 18, 1998), p. 1648, doi:10.1001/jama.280.19.1648, PMID 9831980
Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Läkartidningen, vol. 95, no. 43 (published Oct 21, 1998), pp. 4703–8, PMID 9821753
^Furchgott, Robert F.; Zawadzki, John V. (November 1980). "The obligatory role of endothelial cells in the relaxation of arterial smooth muscle by acetylcholine". Nature. 288 (5789): 373–376. Bibcode:1980Natur.288..373F. doi:10.1038/288373a0. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 6253831. S2CID 4303932.
^"Summary: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1998". NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2020. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
^Raju, T N (2000), "The Nobel chronicles. 1998: Robert Francis Furchgott (b 1911), Louis J Ignarro (b 1941), and Ferid Murad (b 1936).", Lancet, vol. 356, no. 9226 (published Jul 22, 2000), p. 346, doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(05)73635-7, PMID 11071225, S2CID 53221905
^Rabelink, A J (1998), "Nobel prize in Medicine and Physiology 1998 for the discovery of the role of nitric oxide as a signalling molecule", Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde, vol. 142, no. 52 (published Dec 26, 1998), pp. 2828–30, PMID 10065255
^Laufs, U; Erdmann, E (1998), "Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system. Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1998", Dtsch. Med. Wochenschr., vol. 123, no. 51–52 (published Dec 18, 1998), pp. 1562–5, doi:10.1055/s-0029-1237297, PMID 9893684, S2CID 68505199
^Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "The Nobel Prize 1998 in physiology or medicine. Nitrogen oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Ugeskrift for Læger, vol. 160, no. 52 (published Dec 21, 1998), pp. 7571–8, PMID 9889673
^Nielsen, T T; Sørensen, K E (1998), "Discovery of "endogenous nitroglycerin", NO, as cellular signal molecule", Ugeskrift for Læger, vol. 160, no. 52 (published Dec 21, 1998), p. 7567, PMID 9889670
^Mitka, M (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize winners are announced: three discoverers of nitric oxide activity", JAMA, vol. 280, no. 19 (published Nov 18, 1998), p. 1648, doi:10.1001/jama.280.19.1648, PMID 9831980
^Hansson, G K; Jörnvall, H; Lindahl, S G (1998), "1998 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. Nitric oxide as a signal molecule in the cardiovascular system", Läkartidningen, vol. 95, no. 43 (published Oct 21, 1998), pp. 4703–8, PMID 9821753
^BBC News vom 23. Mai 2009: US „Viagra scientist“ dies at 92.
^Furchgott, R.F. (1996), "The 1996 Albert Lasker Medical Research Awards. The discovery of endothelium-derived relaxing factor and its importance in the identification of nitric oxide", JAMA, vol. 276, no. 14 (published Oct 9, 1996), pp. 1186–8, doi:10.1001/jama.276.14.1186, PMID 8827976