William Richmond (21 November 1941 in

Springfield, Fife Springfield is a village that lies at the edge of the Howe of Fife, to the south-west of the town of Cupar, Fife, Scotland. The origin of the community is thought to be from the linen industry in the 19th century. The Church of Scotland parish c ...

– 18 August 2010 in

Advie Advie ( gd, Àbhaidh) is a small village in Strathspey, in the Highland Council Area of Scotland. It lies to the south of the River Spey, and next to the A95 road, roughly halfway between Grantown-on-Spey and Aberlour. History Advie was i ...

) was a Scottish biochemist and medical researcher, best known for developing a new method for testing blood

cholesterol Cholesterol is any of a class of certain organic molecules called lipids. It is a sterol (or modified steroid), a type of lipid. Cholesterol is biosynthesized by all animal cells and is an essential structural component of animal cell mem ...

. This test has come to be known as the Richmond test. After leaving school, he studied Chemistry at St. Andrews University. His first job was at

Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy Victoria Hospital is a large hospital situated to the north of the town centre in Kirkcaldy, in Fife, Scotland. As one of two main hospitals in Fife, this serves both the town and surrounding Mid-Fife area. It is managed by NHS Fife. History T ...

. He later worked in London, and spent most of his working life working in hospitals there, such as St. Mary's Hospital, Paddington. His research, funded by the Medical Research Council, led to the development of a new test for cholesterol in 1973. This test has since been widely used to test for cholesterol levels globally. He died on holiday in an accident while fishing on the Spey. He was always proud to be a Scot, and composed music for the bagpipes.

References

1941 births 2010 deaths 20th-century Scottish medical doctors 21st-century Scottish medical doctors Scottish biochemists People from Fife Alumni of the University of St Andrews {{Scotland-med-bio-stub