Alfred Fröhlich (August 15, 1871 – March 22, 1953) was an Austrian-American

pharmacologist Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between ...

and

neurologist Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous system, which comprises the brain, the ...

born in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Biography

Fröhlich was born in Vienna, into a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family.Joseph Meites, ''Pioneers in Neuroendocrinology'', Springer Science & Business Media (2012), p. 115 In 1895 he graduated from the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

, afterwards remaining at Vienna as an assistant to Carl Nothnagel (1841–1905). In 1905 he became a member of the department of pharmacology at the university, and from 1919 until 1939 he was a full professor of pharmacology and

toxicology Toxicology is a scientific discipline, overlapping with biology, chemistry, pharmacology, and medicine, that involves the study of the adverse effects of chemical substances on living organisms and the practice of diagnosing and treating ex ...

. Following the Nazi takeover of Austria, Fröhlich emigrated to the United States, where he worked at the May Institute of Medical Research of the Jewish Hospital of

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. Here he continued his experimental research of the

central nervous system The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain, spinal cord and retina. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity o ...

. He is remembered for his studies on the effects of the

pituitary The pituitary gland or hypophysis is an endocrine gland in vertebrates. In humans, the pituitary gland is located at the base of the brain, protruding off the bottom of the hypothalamus. The pituitary gland and the hypothalamus control much of th ...

on the

autonomic nervous system The autonomic nervous system (ANS), sometimes called the visceral nervous system and formerly the vegetative nervous system, is a division of the nervous system that operates viscera, internal organs, smooth muscle and glands. The autonomic nervo ...

. With

Otto Loewi Otto Loewi (; 3 June 1873 – 25 December 1961) was a Germany, German-born pharmacology, pharmacologist and psychobiologist who discovered the role of acetylcholine as an endogenous neurotransmitter. For this discovery, he was awarded the Nobel ...

(1873–1961), he performed

pharmacological Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between ...

research on

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

. He was a good friend of

Harvey Cushing Harvey Williams Cushing (April 8, 1869 – October 7, 1939) was an American neurosurgery, neurosurgeon, pathologist, writer, and draftsman. A pioneer of brain surgery, he was the first exclusive neurosurgeon and the first person to describe Cush ...

, whom he met in 1901 while working with

Charles Scott Sherrington Sir Charles Scott Sherrington (27 November 1857 – 4 March 1952) was a British neurophysiology, neurophysiologist. His experimental research established many aspects of contemporary neuroscience, including the concept of the spinal reflex as a ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

. In addition to his own laboratory, he also worked in marine laboratories at

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Helgoland Heligoland (; , ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , ) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. The islands were historically possessions of Denmark, then became possessions of the United Kingdom from 1807 to 1890. Since 1890, the ...

and in

Woods Hole, Massachusetts Woods Hole is a census-designated place in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It lies at the extreme southwestern corner of Cape Cod, near Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands. The population was 78 ...

during his career. Fröhlich died in 1953 in Cincinnati.

Fröhlich's syndrome

In 1901 he provided a comprehensive description of '' dystrophia adiposogenitalis'', of which he published a paper titled ''Ein Fall von Tumor der Hypophysis cerebri ohne Akromegalie''. This disorder is characterized by feminine

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...

along with retarded sexual maturity, and is caused by

tumor A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

s of the pituitary. In honor of his discovery, this condition was to become known as " Fröhlich's syndrome". It is sometimes referred to as Babinski-Fröhlich syndrome, named in conjunction with Joseph Babinski, who gave an independent description of the disease a year earlier in 1900.

Selected publications

* ''Ein Fall von Tumor der Hypophysis cerebri ohne Akromegalie'' (A case involving a tumor of the hypophysis cerebri without

acromegaly Acromegaly is a disorder that results in excess growth of certain parts of the human body. It is caused by excess growth hormone (GH) after the growth plates have closed. The initial symptom is typically enlargement of the hands and feet. There ...

), In: Wiener klinische Rundschau, 1901, 15: 833–836; 906–908. * ''Pharmakologie des Centralnervensystems'' (

Pharmacology Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur betwee ...

of the central nervous system). In: Handbuch der normalen und pathologischen Physiologie. Volume 10, Wien, 1927. * ''Pharmakologie des vegetativen (autonomen) Nervensystems'' (Pharmacology of the autonomic nervous system), In: Handbuch der normalen und pathologischen Physiologie. Volume 10, Wien, 1927. * ''Allgemein lähmende und erregbarkeitssteigernde Gifte'', In: Handbuch der normalen und pathologischen Physiologie. Volume 9, Wien, 1929.

References

''Alfred Fröhlich''
@

Who Named It ''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograp ...

;Specific

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Frohlich, Alfred Austrian Jews Neurologists from Austria-Hungary Austrian neurologists Austrian pharmacologists 1871 births 1953 deaths Academic staff of the University of Vienna Scientists from Vienna Emigrants from Austria after the Anschluss to the United States