David Nachmansohn (17 March 1899 – 2 November 1983) was a German-

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

responsible for elucidating the role of

phosphocreatine Phosphocreatine, also known as creatine phosphate (CP) or PCr (Pcr), is a phosphorylation, phosphorylated form of creatine that serves as a rapidly mobilizable reserve of high-energy phosphates in skeletal muscle, myocardium and the brain to recyc ...

in energy production in the

muscle Muscle is a soft tissue, one of the four basic types of animal tissue. There are three types of muscle tissue in vertebrates: skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and smooth muscle. Muscle tissue gives skeletal muscles the ability to muscle contra ...

s, and the role of the

neurotransmitter A neurotransmitter is a signaling molecule secreted by a neuron to affect another cell across a Chemical synapse, synapse. The cell receiving the signal, or target cell, may be another neuron, but could also be a gland or muscle cell. Neurotra ...

acetylcholine Acetylcholine (ACh) is an organic compound that functions in the brain and body of many types of animals (including humans) as a neurotransmitter. Its name is derived from its chemical structure: it is an ester of acetic acid and choline. Par ...

in nerve stimulation. He is also recognised for his basic research into the biochemistry and mechanism underlying bioelectric phenomena.

Early life and education

He was born in Ekaterinoslav, Russia (now

Dnipro Dnipro is Ukraine's fourth-largest city, with about one million inhabitants. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, southeast of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the Dnieper River, Dnipro River, from which it takes its name. Dnipro is t ...

, Ukraine), moving to Berlin at an early age. In 1926 he went to the Kaiser-Wilhelm Institut für Biologie where he worked in the laboratory under Otto Meyerhof. Nachmansohn discovered that rapidly contracting muscles contained more phosphocreatine than slowly contracting ones, which eventually led to the hypothesis that phosphocreatine was involved in the regeneration of the ATP that was built up to provide energy during muscular contraction.

Exile and research career

Leaving Nazi-era Berlin, Nachmansohn arrived in Paris in 1933 and took up a position in the Sorbonne. There he discovered that

acetylcholinesterase Acetylcholinesterase (HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee, HGNC symbol ACHE; EC 3.1.1.7; systematic name acetylcholine acetylhydrolase), also known as AChE, AChase or acetylhydrolase, is the primary cholinesterase in the body. It is an enzyme th ...

is present at high concentrations in many different types of excitable nerve and muscle fibres and in brain tissue - lending support for

Otto Loewi Otto Loewi (; 3 June 1873 – 25 December 1961) was a Germany, German-born pharmacology, pharmacologist and psychobiologist who discovered the role of acetylcholine as an endogenous neurotransmitter. For this discovery, he was awarded the Nobel ...

and Henry Dale's then novel proposal that acetylcholine functions in the transmission of impulses from nerves across junctions to other nerves or to

muscles Muscle is a soft tissue, one of the four basic types of animal tissue. There are three types of muscle tissue in vertebrates: skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and smooth muscle. Muscle tissue gives skeletal muscles the ability to muscle contra ...

. Nachmansohn obtained very active solutions of acetylcholinesterase from the electric organ of the marbled electric ray ('' Torpedo marmorata''). Nachmansohn moved to

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in 1939 and while there published studies confirming the presence of an even higher concentration of acetylcholinesterase in the electric organ of

electric eel The electric eels are a genus, ''Electrophorus'', of neotropical freshwater fish from South America in the family Gymnotidae, of which they are the only members of the subfamily Electrophorinae. They are known for their electric fish, ability ...

s (''

Electrophorus electricus ''Electrophorus electricus'' is the best-known species of electric eel. It is a South American electric fish. Until the discovery of two additional species in 2019, the genus was classified as the monotypic, with this species the only one in the ...

''). This work also demonstrated a strong connection between the release of acetylcholine and the electric discharge. In 1942 Nachmansohn moved into a laboratory at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

where his group continued to publish on the mechanism underlying electric discharge in fish; using

s provided by the aquarium of the

New York Zoological Society New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

Honours and affiliations

David Nachmansohn was elected a member of the Leopoldina in 1963 and became a member of the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

(USA) in 1965. He was made an Honorary Fellow of the

Weizmann Institute The Weizmann Institute of Science ( ''Machon Weizmann LeMada'') is a Public university, public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, fourteen years before the State of Israel was founded. Unlike other List of Israeli uni ...

in 1972.

References

External links

*
Finding aid to the David Nachmansohn papers at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nachmansohn, David 1899 births 1983 deaths German biochemists Jewish Ukrainian scientists Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences