Edward Joseph Conway FRS (3 July 1894 – 29 December 1968) was an Irish

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

known for works pertaining to electrolyte physiology and analytical chemistry.

Early life and education

Edward Joseph Conway was born on 3 July 1894 in Nenagh, North Tipperary. He attended the Christian Brothers' School at Nenagh where he earned sixth place in the whole of Ireland for the junior grade of the Intermediate Board examinations, qualifying for prizes in experimental science, mathematics and modern literature. He chose the science scolarship award and attended Blackrock College then University College Dublin (UCD), graduating M.Sc. after winning a studentship to the University of Frankfurt am Main, where he was awarded D.Sc. He returned to Ireland to become the first Professor of Biochemistry and Pharmacology at University College Dublin in 1932, a post he held until 1963.

Research

E. J. Conway was one of Ireland's most distinguished scientists; he was a world authority on

electrolyte An electrolyte is a medium containing ions that is electrically conducting through the movement of those ions, but not conducting electrons. This includes most soluble salts, acids, and bases dissolved in a polar solvent, such as water. Upon dis ...

physiology, and in general on the physiology of the inorganic constituents of living tissue. He published over 120 papers, as well as two books: ''Microdiffusion Analysis and Volumetric Error'' and ''The Biochemistry of Gastric Acid Secretion''. His research focussed on renal function between 1920-1937, ionic balance of tissue, specifically muscle and chemical evolution of the ocean between 1937-1945, and acid secretion by yeast and gastric mucosa from 1945 until his retirement in 1963.

Notable students

Ethna Gaffney Ethna Elizabeth (née O’Malley) Gaffney (6 May 1920 – 29 September 2011) was an Irish professor and scientist. She was the first female professor at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, holding the position for over twenty years fro ...

, first female professor at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

Awards

Conway was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1947, his application citation stating that he was "Distinguished for investigations of chemical and physiochemical processes in living tissues, including a quantitative interpretation of the processes underlying potassium accumulation in isolated muscle, with applications to resting potentials and related questions; the exact determination of blood ammonia, the ammonia increase in shed blood, and studies of the deaminase involved; general structural relations of the mammalian kidney, and studies of diffusion rates through tissues; biochemical studies of yeast fermentation in relation to cationic exchanges and production of free hydrochloric acid; bio-geochemical study of oceanic evolution; new methods of micro-diffusion analysis". In 1961 Conway became the first Irish scientist to become a Member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, nominated by Pope John XXIII. In 1967 he was the recipient of the

Royal Dublin Society The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) ( ga, Cumann Ríoga Bhaile Átha Cliath) is an Irish philanthropic organisation and members club which was founded as the 'Dublin Society' on 25 June 1731 with the aim to see Ireland thrive culturally and economi ...

's Boyle Medal.Boyle Medal Laureates

UCD's new Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, which opened in August 2003, was named in his honour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conway, Edward Joseph 1894 births 1968 deaths People from Nenagh Irish biochemists Irish biologists Fellows of the Royal Society People educated at Blackrock College Alumni of University College Dublin 20th-century biologists Members of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences