Rudi Schmid (2 May 1922 – 20 October 2007) was a Swiss-born American medical researcher specializing in

hepatology Hepatology is the branch of medicine that incorporates the study of liver, gallbladder, biliary tree, and pancreas as well as management of their disorders. Although traditionally considered a sub-specialty of gastroenterology, rapid expansion ...

. Among his contributions to biomedical science, Schmid led a team to discover

heme oxygenase Heme oxygenase, or haem oxygenase, (HMOX, commonly abbreviated as HO) is an enzyme that catalyzes the degradation of heme to produce biliverdin, ferrous ion, and carbon monoxide. There are many heme degrading enzymes in nature. In general, onl ...

. Schmid was born on 2 May 1922 to physician parents. He was born and raised in

Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...

, which inspired his interest in mountain climbing. Schmid became a skilled alpinist and skier. Schmid was a member of the Swiss national ski team from 1941 to 1945, and led the Academic Alpine Club while studying at the

University of Zurich The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 f ...

. In 1946, while still at university, Schmid became one of the first climbers to ascend

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (french: Mont Blanc ; it, Monte Bianco , both meaning "white mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe, rising above sea level. It is the second-most prominent mountain in Europe, after Mount Elbrus, and ...

via its west face. He graduated from medical school in 1947, and the next year helped organize an expedition to the

Cordillera Blanca The Cordillera Blanca (Spanish for "white range") is a mountain range in Peru that is part of the larger Andes range and extends for between 8°08' and 9°58'S and 77°00' and 77°52'W, in a northwesterly direction. It includes several peaks ove ...

range in Peru for members of the Swiss Academic Club Alpine. While recovering from injuries during his time in Peru, Schmid met Salvatore Lucia, who suggested to Schmid that he apply to the

University of California, San Francisco The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) is a public land-grant research university in San Francisco, California. It is part of the University of California system and is dedicated entirely to health science and life science. It con ...

, where Lucia taught. After completing the UCSF medical internship program, Schmid began his residency and doctoral study at the

University of Minnesota Medical School The University of Minnesota Medical School is the medical school of the University of Minnesota. It is a combination of two campuses situated in Minneapolis and Duluth, Minnesota. The University of Minnesota Medical School is also part of one of ...

under Cecil Watson and Samuel Schwartz. While pursuing advanced medical studies, Schmid married Sonja Wild in Sacramento, and naturalized as an American citizen in 1954, upon completing his degree. Schmid was a postdoctoral researcher at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, then worked for the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

before joining the Thorndike Memorial Laboratory, a division of the Harvard Medical Unit at

Boston City Hospital The Boston City Hospital (1864–1996), in Boston, Massachusetts, was a public hospital, located in the South End. It was "intended for the use and comfort of poor patients, to whom medical care will be provided at the expense of the city, and . ...

. He began teaching at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

in 1962. Four years later, Schmid joined the UCSF faculty. He was dean of the

UCSF School of Medicine The UCSF School of Medicine is the medical school of the University of California, San Francisco and is located at the base of Mount Sutro on the Parnassus Heights campus in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1864 by Hugh Toland, it is the ol ...

from 1983 to 1989. Over the course of his career, Schmid was granted membership into the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, and the

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 ...

. He was later honored with the establishment of the Rudi Schmid Distinguished Professorship in Neurology at UCSF. Schmid died of pulmonary failure on 20 October 2007, at home in

Kentfield, California Kentfield (formerly Ross Landing, Tamalpais, and Kent) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Marin County, California, United States, just north of San Francisco. Kentfield is located southwest of downtown San Rafael, at an elevation of 115 fee ...

, aged 85.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schmid, Rudi Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences 2007 deaths American hepatologists University of Zurich alumni Swiss emigrants to the United States Swiss male skiers Swiss mountain climbers University of California, San Francisco alumni University of California, San Francisco faculty University of Minnesota Medical School alumni National Institutes of Health people University of Chicago faculty Members of the National Academy of Medicine Members of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina 1922 births People from Glarus