Ivars Kalviņš (born 2 June 1947) is a Latvian chemist who invented the drug

meldonium Meldonium (INN; trade name Mildronate, among others) is a limited-market pharmaceutical, developed in 1970 by Ivars Kalviņš at the USSR Latvia Institute of Organic Synthesis, and now manufactured by the Latvian pharmaceutical company Gri ...

, trade-named Mildronate.Ivars KALVIŅŠ
. Inventions.lza.lv. Retrieved on 14 May 2016.

Biography

In 1969 Kalviņš graduated from the Faculty of Chemistry,

University of Latvia University of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Universitāte, shortened ''LU'') is a state-run university located in Riga, Latvia established in 1919. The ''QS World University Rankings'' places the university between 801st and 1000th globally, seventh ...

, and in 1985 defended a habilitation at the Saint Petersburg State University. Since 1986 he works at the Riga Institute of Organic Synthesis, which he headed in 2003–2014. Earlier between 1994 and 2000 he served as President of the Latvian Society of Chemistry. Kalviņš was involved in the synthesis of several drugs, including meldonium, leakadin, neramexane, and belinostat.

Awards and honors

Kalviņš is an Officer of

Order of the Three Stars Order of the Three Stars ( lv, Triju Zvaigžņu ordenis) is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvija ...

and since 1994 is a full member of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. He was awarded the State Prize of the Latvian SSR in 1988 and the Grand Medal of Academy of Sciences of Latvia in 2009. He was nominated as a finalist for the

European Inventor Award The European Inventor Award(formerly European Inventor of the Year Award, renamed in 2010), are presented annually by the European Patent Office, sometimes supported by the respective Presidency of the Council of the European Union and by the Eur ...

2015. As a member of a team of authors he received the "Annual Award in Science 2017" for the development of a new and promising compound E1R (

methylphenylpiracetam Methylphenylpiracetam is a derivative of piracetam and a positive allosteric modulator of the sigma-1 receptor. It differs from phenylpiracetam by having a methyl group. E1R is the (4''R'',5''S'') stereoisomer of methylphenylpiracetam. Enantio ...

) for improving memory and treating epilepsy. The E1R is the first known and published positive allosteric modulator of Sigma 1 receptor that improves memory processes and prevents seizures.

References

External links

Интервью
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kalvins, Ivars 1947 births Living people Scientists from Riga Latvian chemists Soviet chemists Academicians of the Latvian Academy of Sciences University of Latvia alumni 20th-century Latvian inventors