Sir David Jack (22 February 1924 – 8 November 2011) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

pharmacologist and medicinal chemist who specialised in the development of drugs for treating

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, cou ...

. He was head of research and development at Glaxo from 1978 until 1987.

Early life and education

Jack was born the sixth and youngest child of a coal miner, in Markinch,

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. He attended Buckhaven High School before turning down a place at Edinburgh University to become an apprentice

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

. In 1944, having completed his apprenticeship, he began a BSc course in chemistry and pharmacy at the Royal Technical College,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. He won a number of undergraduate prizes and graduated with first class honours.

Career

He turned down an offer to study for a doctorate and instead worked as an assistant lecturer at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. In 1951 he joined the pharmaceutical company

Glaxo Laboratories GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tent ...

, moving to Smith Kline and French in 1953. In 1961 he became director of research at Allen and Hanburys, a subsidiary of Glaxo, and served as Glaxo's research and development director from 1978 until his official retirement in 1987. Jack was known for heading a group which developed the following drugs: * Beclometasone in 1962 *

Salbutamol Salbutamol, also known as albuterol and sold under the brand name Ventolin among others, is a medication that opens up the medium and large airways in the lungs. It is a short-acting β2 adrenergic receptor agonist which works by causing rel ...

or Albuterol in 1966, * Ranitidine in 1977, *

Sumatriptan Sumatriptan, sold commonly under brand names Imitrex and Treximet among others, is a medication used to treat migraine headaches and cluster headaches. It is taken orally, intranasally, or by subcutaneous injection. Therapeutic effects gen ...

in 1984, *

Salmeterol Salmeterol (sold in China as Qitai) is a long-acting β2 adrenergic receptor agonist (LABA) used in the maintenance and prevention of asthma symptoms and maintenance of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) symptoms. Symptoms of bronchos ...

or serevent in 1985, * Ondansetron in 1987, * and

Fluticasone propionate Fluticasone propionate, sold under the brand names Flovent and Flonase among others, is a steroid medication. When inhaled it is used for the long term management of asthma and COPD. In the nose it is used for hay fever and nasal polyps. It ...

in 1993.

Honours

Jack was knighted for services to the pharmaceutical industry in 1993. In 1987, he was awarded an Honorary Degree (Doctor of Science) by the University of Bath.

References

External links

Last Word 25/11/2011

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

.
Interviews with Sir David Jack CBE FRS FRSE

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic (United Kingdom), Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and High ...

Library Medical Sciences Video Archive * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jack, David Scottish pharmacologists Pharmaceutical scientists 1924 births 2011 deaths GSK plc people People educated at Buckhaven High School People from Markinch Alumni of the University of Glasgow Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Knights Bachelor Alumni of the University of Strathclyde