Bruce Sherman McEwen (January 17, 1938 – January 2, 2020) was an American neuroendocrinologist and head of the Harold and Margaret Milliken Hatch Laboratory of

Neuroendocrinology Neuroendocrinology is the branch of biology (specifically of physiology) which studies the interaction between the nervous system and the endocrine system; i.e. how the brain regulates the hormonal activity in the body. The nervous and endocrine ...

Rockefeller University The Rockefeller University is a private biomedical research and graduate-only university in New York City, New York. It focuses primarily on the biological and medical sciences and provides doctoral and postdoctoral education. It is classif ...

. He was known for his work on the effects of environmental and psychological stress, having coined the term

allostatic load Allostatic load is "the wear and tear on the body" which accumulates as an individual is exposed to repeated or chronic stress. The term was coined by Bruce McEwen and Eliot Stellar in 1993. It represents the physiological consequences of chro ...

Career

McEwen received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Oberlin College and his Ph.D. in cell biology from Rockefeller University in 1964. The McEwen laboratory was at the forefront of estrogen and glucocorticoid action in the brain for decades. McEwen's group demonstrated for the first time that estrogen can increase dendritic spine density in the CA1 subfield of the hippocampus. In addition, his lab also discovered stress-induced dendritic retraction in the CA3 hippocampal subfield. By pioneering the role of both gonadal and adrenal steroid action in the brain, the McEwen laboratory helped develop the modern concept of stress. His research has focused on

glucocorticoid Glucocorticoids (or, less commonly, glucocorticosteroids) are a class of corticosteroids, which are a class of steroid hormones. Glucocorticoids are corticosteroids that bind to the glucocorticoid receptor that is present in almost every vertebr ...

stress Stress may refer to: Science and medicine * Stress (biology), an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition * Stress (linguistics), relative emphasis or prominence given to a syllable in a word, or to a word in a phrase ...

and

neuron A neuron, neurone, or nerve cell is an electrically excitable cell that communicates with other cells via specialized connections called synapses. The neuron is the main component of nervous tissue in all animals except sponges and placozoa. N ...

al degeneration. McEwen's notable students include

Robert Sapolsky Robert Morris Sapolsky (born April 6, 1957) is an American neuroendocrinology researcher and author. He is a professor of biology, and professor of neurology and neurological sciences and, by courtesy, neurosurgery, at Stanford University. In ad ...

, Elizabeth Gould, Catherine Woolley,

Michael Meaney Michael J. Meaney, CM, CQ, FRSC, (born 1951) is a professor at McGill University specializing in biological psychiatry, neurology, and neurosurgery, who is primarily known for his research on stress, maternal care, and gene expression. His re ...

, and Heather Cameron. McEwen was a former president of the

Society for Neuroscience The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) is a professional society, headquartered in Washington, DC, for basic scientists and physicians around the world whose research is focused on the study of the brain and nervous system. It is especially well kn ...

and was a member of the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

, the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

and the

National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, En ...

. McEwen published his first paper in 1959, and eventually published more than 700 peer-reviewed articles in journals including ''Nature'', ''JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, The New England Journal of Medicine, Neurobiology of Aging'' and ''The Journal of Neuroscience''. His expertise and work have been featured on ''ABC, NBC, CNN, PBS, NPR, BBC,'' and in ''The New York Times'', ''The Wall Street Journal'', and many others. He was co-author of the book ''The End of Stress As We Know It'', with science writer Elizabeth Norton Lasley, and another book ''The Hostage Brain'', with science writer Harold M. Schmeck Jr. He has received numerous awards including a share of the IPSEN Foundation Prize in Neuroplasticity, the Gold Medal award from the

Society for Biological Psychiatry A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

, the Pasarow Award in Neuropsychiatry, the

British Endocrine Society British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

's Dale Medal, the Goldman-Rakic Prize for Cognitive Neuroscience from the

Brain & Behavior Research Foundation The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that funds mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It like ...

and the Karl Spencer Lashley Award from the American Philosophical Society. McEwen was on the Scientific Advisory Board of Anti-AgingGames.com where he collaborated with

Nolan Bushnell Nolan Kay Bushnell (born February 5, 1943) is an American businessman and electrical engineer. He established Atari, Inc. and the Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre chain. He has been inducted into the Video Game Hall of Fame and the Consume ...

, the founding father of video games, and with a team of world-renowned behavioral neuroscientists to create memory, focus and relaxation games for healthy adults over the age of 35.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McEwen, Bruce 1938 births 2020 deaths Writers from Fort Collins, Colorado American neuroscientists 20th-century psychologists 21st-century psychologists Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Oberlin College alumni Rockefeller University alumni American biologists Members of the National Academy of Medicine