Max Rudolf "Rudi" Lemberg FRS FAA (19 October 1896 – 10 April 1975) was a German-Australian biochemist who specialised in

porphyrin Porphyrins ( ) are a group of heterocyclic macrocycle organic compounds, composed of four modified pyrrole subunits interconnected at their α carbon atoms via methine bridges (=CH−). The parent of porphyrin is porphine, a rare chemical com ...

structure and function. He was a Foundation

Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science The Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Science is made up of about 500 Australian scientists. Scientists judged by their peers to have made an exceptional contribution to knowledge in their field may be elected to Fellowship of the Academy. ...

(FAA). Originally published in ''Records of the Australian Academy of Science'', vol.4, no.1, 1978. Also available a
AAS
/ref> First published in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 15, (MUP), 2000. He was a director of the

Kolling Institute of Medical Research The Kolling Institute is located in the grounds of the Royal North Shore Hospital in St Leonards, Sydney Australia. The institute, founded in 1920, is the oldest medical research institute in New South Wales. The Kolling Institute is a part ...

from 1935 to 1972, establishing a major research focus on

porphyrins Porphyrins ( ) are a group of heterocyclic macrocycle organic compounds, composed of four modified pyrrole subunits interconnected at their α carbon atoms via methine bridges (=CH−). The parent of porphyrin is porphine, a rare chemical compo ...

, structures within molecules which give the red colour to

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the c ...

and the yellow colour to

bile Bile (from Latin ''bilis''), or gall, is a dark-green-to-yellowish-brown fluid produced by the liver of most vertebrates that aids the digestion of lipids in the small intestine. In humans, bile is produced continuously by the liver (liver bile ...

. He applied for

naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

as an Australian citizen in 1937.

Rudi Lemberg Travelling Fellowship

The Rudi Lemberg Travelling Fellowship offered by the Academy is named in his honour. Awardees: * 2018 – Christina A. Kellogg * 2016 – L.J. Berliner * 2012 – P. Jones * 2010 – J. Deisenhofer * 2008 — John F. Allen * 2006 – J. Vymazal * 2004 – G.C. Dismukes * 2002 – P. Fromme; R.N. Perham * 2001 – D.M.J.S. Bowman * 1999 – V.L. Schramm * 1997 – M.D. Brand * 1996 — T.F. Flannery * 1993 – W.R. Briggs * 1992 – E.M. Kosower * 1991 – R. Huber * 1990 – J. Porath * 1989 – M.L. Rosenzweig * 1986 – H. Scheer * 1985 – M.G. Rossmann * 1984 – O.T.G. Jones * 1983 – J. Heslop-Harrison * 1982 – W.K. Joklik * 1981 – E. Margoliash; P.H. Raven * 1980 – L.E. Mortenson; G.J.V. Nossal * 1979 – B. Chance; J.B. Gurdon; G.S. Stent

References

1896 births 1975 deaths Australian biochemists German emigrants to Australia Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science Fellows of the Royal Society Place of birth missing {{Australia-scientist-stub