Joanna Sigfred Fowler (born August 9, 1942) is a scientist emeritus at the U.S. Department of Energy's

Brookhaven National Laboratory Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is a United States Department of Energy national laboratory located in Upton, Long Island, and was formally established in 1947 at the site of Camp Upton, a former U.S. Army base and Japanese internment c ...

in New York. She served as professor of psychiatry at

Mount Sinai School of Medicine The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS or Mount Sinai), formerly the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, is a private medical school in New York City. It is the academic teaching arm of the Mount Sinai Health System, which manages eig ...

and director of Brookhaven's Radiotracer Chemistry, Instrumentation and Biological Imaging Program. Fowler studied the effect of disease, drugs, and aging on the human brain and

radiotracer A radioactive tracer, radiotracer, or radioactive label is a chemical compound in which one or more atoms have been replaced by a radionuclide so by virtue of its radioactive decay it can be used to explore the mechanism of chemical reactions by tr ...

s in brain chemistry. She has received many awards for her pioneering work, including 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 ...

Life and education

Fowler was born in Miami, Florida, and attended the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF i ...

, where she received her bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1964. There, she worked in the laboratories of Jack Fernandez. Fowler received her

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

in chemistry from the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University o ...

in 1967 and did her

postdoctoral A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to pu ...

work at the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

in England and at

. Fowler worked at Brookhaven National Laboratory from 1969 until her retirement in January 2014. She is an emeritus professor in the chemistry department at Stony Brook University. She is married to Frank Fowler, an emeritus professor of organic chemistry at Stony Brook University.

Research and achievements

Fowler's research has led to new fundamental knowledge, development of important scientific tools, and has broad impacts in the application of

nuclear medicine Nuclear medicine or nucleology is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging, in a sense, is " radiology done inside out" because it records radiation emi ...

to diagnostics and health. She has worked for much of her career developing radiotracers for brain imaging to understand the mechanisms underlying drug addiction. Most recently, she has been engaged in developing methods to understand the relationship between genes, brain chemistry, and behavior. In 1976, Fowler and her colleagues designed and synthesized a

radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is consi ...

ly "tagged" form of sugar that is now used widely to study

brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a ve ...

function and also to diagnose and plan treatment for

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. She also developed another

, as these "tagged" molecules are called, that first showed that

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...

's distribution in the human brain parallels its effects on behavior. Fowler played a central role in the development of a fluorine-18-labeled

glucose Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, u ...

molecule (FDG) enabling human brain glucose metabolism to be measured noninvasively. This positron-emitting molecule, together with positron emission tomography (PET) imaging, has become a mainstay for brain-imaging studies in

schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wit ...

, aging and

. Another of her major accomplishments was the development of the first radiotracers to map monoamine oxidase (MAO), a brain enzyme that regulates the levels of other nerve-cell communication chemicals and one of the two major enzymes involved in neurotransmitter regulation in the brain and peripheral organs. Using these radiotracers, she discovered that smokers have reduced levels of MAO in their brains and lungs. This may account for some of the behavioral and

epidemiological Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evidenc ...

features of smoking, such as the high rate of smoking in individuals with depression and drug addiction, two conditions involving poor

nerve-cell A neuron, neurone, or nerve cell is an electrically excitable cell that communicates with other cells via specialized connections called synapses. The neuron is the main component of nervous tissue in all animals except sponges and placozoa. No ...

communication, and has led to many studies on reduced MAO and smoking. Fowler holds eight patents for radiolabeling procedures.

Major publications

Fowler has published approximately 530 papers. The following are a few of the most cited: * Inhibition of monoamine oxidase B in the brains of smokers. Fowler, J.S., Volkow, N.D., Wang, G.-J., et al. ''Nature''. Volume 379, Issue 6567, 22 February 1996, Pages 733-736 * Distribution volume ratios without blood sampling from graphical analysis of PET data. Logan, J., Fowler, J.S., Volkow, N.D., et al. ''Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism''. Volume 16, Issue 5, 1996, Pages 834-840 * Decreased dopamine D2 receptor availability is associated with reduced frontal metabolism in cocaine abusers. Volkow, N.D., Fowler, J.S., Wang, G.-J., et al. ''Synapse''. Volume 14, Issue 2, 1993, Pages 169-177 * Brain dopamine and obesity. Wang, G.-J., Volkow, N., Fowler, J., et al. ''The Lancet''. Volume 327, Issue 9253, 2001, Pages 354–357. * Cocaine cues and dopamine in dorsal striatum: mechanism of craving in cocaine addiction. Volkow, N., Wang, G.-J., Fowler, J., et al. ''Journal of Neuroscience''. Volume 26, Issue 24, 2006, Pages 6583-6588

Awards and honors

Fowler's scientific excellence and achievements have been recognized by prestigious awards, including the

, awarded in 2009 by President Obama. In 2003, Fowler was elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Her numerous other honors include: * 1997 – Society of Nuclear Medicine's Paul C. Aebersold Award for outstanding achievement in basic science * 1998 –

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all ...

's Francis P. Garvan-John M. Olin Medal * 1998 – E.O. Lawrence Award, awarded by the Department of Energy * 2000 – Society of Nuclear Imaging in Drug Development's Alfred P. Wolf Award * 2002 –

's Glen T. Seaborg Award for Nuclear Chemistry * 2005 – Distinguished Basic Scientist of the Year Award from the Academy of Molecular Imaging (AMI) * 2008 –

, administered by the National Science Foundation and bestowed by the president of the United States * 2009 – National Academy of Science Award in Chemical Sciences, awarded by the National Academy of Sciences * 2011 – Distinguished Women in Chemistry/Chemical Engineering Award, sponsored by the

* Distinguished Scientist Fellowship, sponsored by the

Department of Energy A Ministry of Energy or Department of Energy is a government department in some countries that typically oversees the production of fuel and electricity; in the United States, however, it manages nuclear weapons development and conducts energy-re ...

's Office of Biological and Environmental Research

References

External links

Video of Fowler discussing her work
from the National Science & Technology Medals Foundation
Joanna Fowler's lab page at BNL

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Joanna 1942 births Living people Nuclear chemists American women chemists People associated with the University of East Anglia Recipients of the Garvan–Olin Medal Brookhaven National Laboratory staff Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences National Medal of Science laureates 20th-century American chemists Organic chemists 21st-century American scientists University of South Florida alumni 20th-century American women scientists 21st-century American women scientists