Karl August Folkers (September 1, 1906 – December 7, 1997) was an American

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 ...

who made major contributions to the isolation and identification of bioactive

natural product A natural product is a natural compound or substance produced by a living organism—that is, found in nature. In the broadest sense, natural products include any substance produced by life. Natural products can also be prepared by chemical syn ...

Career

Folkers graduated from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

in 1928. In 1986, the institution awarded him its Alumni Achievement Award. His career was mainly spent at

Merck Merck refers primarily to the German Merck family and three companies founded by the family, including: * the Merck Group, a German chemical, pharmaceutical and life sciences company founded in 1668 ** Merck Serono (known as EMD Serono in the Unite ...

. He played a prominent role in the isolation of vitamin B₁₂ in 1947, which is one of the most structural complex of the vitamins. As a Merck Pharmaceuticals research team, Folkers, Fern P. Rathe, and Edward Anthony Kaczka were the first to isolate the antibiotic

cathomycin Novobiocin, also known as albamycin or cathomycin, is an aminocoumarin antibiotic that is produced by the actinomycete ''Streptomyces niveus'', which has recently been identified as a subjective synonym for ''S. spheroides'' a member of the class ...

in 1955. His team also isolated the antibiotic

cycloserine Cycloserine, sold under the brand name Seromycin, is a GABA transaminase inhibitor and an antibiotic, used to treat tuberculosis. Specifically it is used, along with other antituberculosis medications, for active drug resistant tuberculosis. It ...

. In 1958 his Merck team determined the structure of

coenzyme Q10 Coenzyme Q, also known as ubiquinone and marketed as CoQ10, is a coenzyme family that is ubiquitous in animals and most bacteria (hence the name ubiquinone). In humans, the most common form is coenzyme Q10 or ubiquinone-10. It is a 1,4-benzoq ...

. He later served as director of the Institute of Biomedical Research at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

, where he was also Ashbel Smith Professor of Chemistry. In recognition for his scientific contributions, he received the

Perkin Medal The Perkin Medal is an award given annually by the Society of Chemical Industry (American Section) to a scientist residing in America for an "innovation in applied chemistry resulting in outstanding commercial development." It is considered the h ...

in 1960, the

William H. Nichols Medal The William H. Nichols Medal is awarded annually for original research in chemistry. Nominees must have made a "significant and original contribution in any field of chemistry" during the five years preceding the presentation date. The medallist ...

in 1967, the

Priestley Medal The Priestley Medal is the highest honor conferred by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and is awarded for distinguished service in the field of chemistry. Established in 1922, the award is named after Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen ...

in 1986, and the

National Medal of Science The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...

in 1990.

References

External links

Karl August Folkers
biographical memoir by William Shive 1906 births 1997 deaths 20th-century American biochemists National Medal of Science laureates Vitamin researchers Merck & Co. people University of Texas at Austin faculty University of Illinois alumni {{US-biochemist-stub