Henry Ralph Mahler (1921–1983) was an

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n-born American biochemist known for his research in the fields of both mitochondrial biogenesis and neurochemistry.

Biography

Mahler was born in 1921 in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. He emigrated to

the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1938, where he enrolled in

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the e ...

, from which he graduating in 1943. The same year, he enrolled at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, where he received his Ph.D. in 1948. At Berkeley, he conducted research on aspects of mechanism of photosynthesis in plant

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle, organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant cell, plant and algae, algal cells. Chloroplasts have a high concentration of chlorophyll pigments which captur ...

s under the direction of Nobel Prize winner

Melvin Calvin Melvin Ellis Calvin (April 8, 1911 – January 8, 1997) was an American biochemist known for discovering the Calvin cycle along with Andrew Benson and James Bassham, for which he was awarded the 1961 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He spent most of ...

. He then completed his

postdoc A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary academ ...

at the Texas Research Foundation before joining the faculty of the

University of Wisconsin, Madison A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

's Institute for Enzyme Research in 1949 as a senior research associate. In 1951, he became an assistant professor there. In 1955, he moved to Bloomington,

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

to join the faculty of

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

as an associate professor. He was promoted to full professor at Indiana University in 1957, and was named research professor of biochemistry and neural sciences as well as National Institutes of Health Research Career Investigator there in 1966. In the 1976–77 academic year, he served as an honor fellow at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, a visiting professor at the C.N.R.S. Institute of Molecular Genetics,

Gif-sur-Yvette Gif-sur-Yvette (, "Gif-on- Yvette") is a commune in southwestern Île-de-France, France. It is located in the Vallée de Chevreuse, from the centre of Paris (at Notre-Dame), in the Essonne department on the departmental border with Yvelin ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and visiting professor at the Institut fur Allgemeine Biochemie of the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

. During Professor Mahler's career, he published more than 300 research articles with his many former students, postdoctoral fellows and colleagues. He also coauthored two editions (1966 and 1971) of a well known textbook ''Biological Chemistry'' with his colleague Professor Eugene H. Cordes. In 1972, he collaborated with his Indiana University colleague

Rudolf Raff Rudolf Albert Raff (November 10, 1941 – January 5, 2019) was an American biologist, and the James H. Rudy Professor of Biology at Indiana University. He was renowned for his research in, and promotion of, evolutionary developmental biology. Add ...

on a paper criticizing the theory that

mitochondria A mitochondrion () is an organelle found in the cells of most eukaryotes, such as animals, plants and fungi. Mitochondria have a double membrane structure and use aerobic respiration to generate adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is us ...

in the cells of higher organisms originated as independent,

single-celled organism A unicellular organism, also known as a single-celled organism, is an organism that consists of a single cell, unlike a multicellular organism that consists of multiple cells. Organisms fall into two general categories: prokaryotic organisms and e ...

s. He died on July 6, 1983, of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

Woods Hole Woods Hole is a census-designated place in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It lies at the extreme southwestern corner of Cape Cod, near Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands. The population was 78 ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

References

External links

Chemistry Tree - Henry R. Mahler
Austrian emigrants to the United States 1921 births 1983 deaths Neurochemists Swarthmore College alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Indiana University faculty Scientists from Vienna 20th-century American biochemists {{Biochemist-stub