Sir John Henry Gaddum (31 March 1900 – 30 June 1965) was an English pharmacologist who, with Ulf von Euler, co-discovered the neuropeptide Substance P in 1931. He was a founder member of the

British Pharmacological Society The British Pharmacological Society is the primary UK learned society for pharmacologists concerned with research into drugs and the way they work. Members work in academia, industry, regulatory agencies and the health services, and many are medi ...

and first editor of the ''

British Journal of Pharmacology The ''British Journal of Pharmacology'' is a biweekly peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of experimental pharmacology. It is published for the British Pharmacological Society by Wiley-Blackwell. It was established in 1946 as the ' ...

''.

Early life and education

He was born in

Hale Hale may refer to: Places Australia *Hale, Northern Territory, a locality *Hale River, in southeastern Northern Territory Canada *Hale, Ontario, in Algoma District United Kingdom * Hale, Cumbria, a hamlet near Beetham, Cumbria *Hale, Greater Man ...

(now part of

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

) the son of silk merchant, Henry Edwin Gaddum and his wife Phyllis Mary Barratt. He was educated at Moorland House School, Heswall, Cheshire;

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. Up ...

; and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

. He completed his BSc in Physiology at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

in 1922, and his MD at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

in 1925. His first role was to assist J. W, Trevan at the Wellcome Physiological Research Laboratories.

Career

From 1927–33, Gaddum worked under Henry Dale at the National Institute for Medical Research, and helped develop the classical laws of drug antagonism. He showed that

sympathetic nerves The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is one of the three divisions of the autonomic nervous system, the others being the parasympathetic nervous system and the enteric nervous system. The enteric nervous system is sometimes considered part of the ...

release adrenaline. Together with Ulf von Euler, he established the release of

acetylcholine Acetylcholine (ACh) is an organic chemical that functions in the brain and body of many types of animals (including humans) as a neurotransmitter. Its name is derived from its chemical structure: it is an ester of acetic acid and choline. Part ...

autonomic ganglia An autonomic ganglion is a cluster of nerve cell bodies (a ganglion) in the autonomic nervous system The autonomic nervous system (ANS), formerly referred to as the vegetative nervous system, is a division of the peripheral nervous system that s ...

. From 1933 to 1935, Gaddum was professor of pharmacology at the University of Cairo. Subsequent to this he took up a chair at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

, from 1935 to 1938 and University of London from 1938 to 1942. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he advised the War Office on potential use of toxins and biological weapons. He was given the rank of Lt Colonel. Gaddum was professor of pharmacology at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

from 1942 to 1958. In 1943 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

. His proposers were James Pickering Kendall, James Couper Brash, Thomas J. Mackie and

James Ritchie James Ritchie may refer to: * James Ritchie (rugby union) (1907–1942), Scottish international rugby union player * James Ritchie (naturalist) (1882–1958), President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh * James Ritchie (Massachusetts politician) (1 ...

. He served as the Society's Vice-President 1951–54. In 1945 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of London The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

. He was director of the Institute of Animal Physiology (later Babraham Institute) from 1958 to 1965. In the New Year Honours 1964 Gaddum was made appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

. and invested by The Duke of Edinburgh. In experiments with lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), Gaddum explained how it causes mental disturbances by blocking the stimulating effects of serotonin. He was the first scientist to postulate that 5-HT might have a role in mood regulation. In 1962 he was elected a Member of the

German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (german: Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften), short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded ...

. Edinburgh University awarded him an honorary doctorate (LLD) in 1964. He died in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

on 30 June 1965. There is a plaque commemorating Gaddum on the wall behind Babraham church which backs onto the Babraham Institute site.

Publications

*"Gaddum's Pharmacology" (1948) considered a definitive work for decades.

Military service

Gaddum served in the British Army from 1940 to 42, rising to lieutenant colonel.

Personal life

In 1929, Gaddum married Iris Mary Harmer in

Royston, Hertfordshire Royston is a town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the North Hertfordshire, District of North Hertfordshire and county of Hertfordshire in England. It is situated on the Prime meridian (Greenwich), Greenwich Meridian, which brush ...

. They had three daughters: Susan M. Gaddum (born 1930), Ann R. Gaddum (born 1932), and Phyllis L. Gaddum (born 1937).

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaddum, John Henry 1900 births 1965 deaths Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh People from Hale, Greater Manchester People educated at Rugby School Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Academics of the University of Edinburgh English pharmacologists Members of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina