Leland C. Clark Jr. (December 4, 1918 – September 25, 2005) was an American biochemist born in Rochester, New York. He is most well known as the inventor of the

Clark electrode The Clark electrode is an electrode that measures ambient oxygen partial pressure in a liquid using a catalytic platinum surface according to the net reaction: : O2 + 4 e− + 4 H+ → 2 H2O It improves on a bare platinum electrode by use of a me ...

, a device used for measuring oxygen in blood, water and other liquids. Clark is considered the "father of

biosensor A biosensor is an analytical device, used for the detection of a chemical substance, that combines a biological component with a physicochemical detector. The ''sensitive biological element'', e.g. tissue, microorganisms, organelles, cell rece ...

s", and the modern-day

glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecular formula , which is often abbreviated as Glc. It is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. It is mainly made by plants and most algae d ...

sensor A sensor is often defined as a device that receives and responds to a signal or stimulus. The stimulus is the quantity, property, or condition that is sensed and converted into electrical signal. In the broadest definition, a sensor is a devi ...

used daily by millions of diabetics is based on his research. He conducted pioneering research on heart-lung machines in the 1940s and '50s and was holder of more than 25 patents. Although he developed a

fluorocarbon Fluorocarbons are chemical compounds with carbon-fluorine bonds. Compounds that contain many C-F bonds often have distinctive properties, e.g., enhanced stability, volatility, and hydrophobicity. Several fluorocarbons and their derivatives are ...

-based liquid that could be breathed successfully by mice in place of air, his lifelong goal of developing artificial blood remained unfulfilled at the time of his death. He is the inventor of Oxycyte, a third-generation

perfluorocarbon Fluorocarbons are chemical compounds with carbon-fluorine bonds. Compounds that contain many C-F bonds often have distinctive properties, e.g., enhanced stability, volatility, and hydrophobicity. Several fluorocarbons and their derivatives are ...

(PFC) therapeutic oxygen carrier designed to enhance oxygen delivery to damaged tissues.

Professional life

Clark received his B.S. degree in chemistry from

Antioch College Antioch College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1850 by the Christian Connection and began operating in 1852 as a non-secta ...

in 1941 and his Ph.D. in biochemistry and physiology from the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded in 1850 and moved into its current campus, next to the Genesee River in 1930. With approximately 30,000 full ...

in 1944. Clark began his professional career as an assistant professor of biochemistry at his alma mater, Antioch College, in Yellow Springs, Ohio. When he left Antioch in 1958, he was head of the department. From 1955 to 1958, he held a simultaneous appointment the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine as a Senior Research Associate in Pediatrics and Surgery. In 1958, Clark moved to Alabama to join the Department of Surgery, University of Alabama Medical College as an associate professor of biochemistry. He later became professor of biochemistry in the same department. In 1962, he invented the first

with Champ Lyons. Clark later became professor of research pediatrics at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Research Foundation in 1968 and remained there until he retired in 1991. Afterwards, he helped to found the company Synthetic Blood International, now known as Oxygen Biotherapeutics, Inc., which markets his invention Oxycyte. Other Clark inventions were put into production and marketed by Yellow Springs Instrument Company. He was a founding member of the Editorial Board of the scientific journal ''Biosensors & Bioelectronics'' in 1985.

Personal life

Clark was known as "Lee" to his friends. He met Eleanor Wyckoff while an undergraduate student at Antioch and they were married in 1939. She assisted him in his research throughout his career. They had four daughters.

Honors and awards

Dr. Clark received the following recognition for his work: National Research Council Fellowship (1941).

NIH The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

Research Career Award (1962). Distinguished Lecturer Award,

American College of Chest Physicians The American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) is a medical association in the United States consisting of physicians and non-physician specialists in the field of chest medicine, which includes pulmonology, critical care medicine Intensiv ...

(1975). Honorary Doctor of Science, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (1984). Horace Mann Award for Service to Humanity,

(1984). Heyrovsky Award in Recognition of the Invention of the Membrane-Covered Polarographic Oxygen Electrode (1985).

American Association for Clinical Chemistry The Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (formerly known as the American Association for Clinical Chemistry or AACC) is a global scientific society dedicated to clinical laboratory science and its application to healthcare. ADLM's cu ...

Award for Outstanding Contributions to Clinical Chemistry (1989).

American Heart Association The American Heart Association (AHA) is a nonprofit organization in the United States that funds cardiovascular medical research, educates consumers on healthy living and fosters appropriate Heart, cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability ...

Samuel Kaplan Visionary Award (1991). Enshrinement into the Engineering and Science Hall of Fame (1991). Pharmacia Biosensor’s Sensational Contributions to the Advancement of Biosensor Technology Award (1992). Daniel Drake Award for Outstanding Achievements in Research,

University of Cincinnati College of Medicine University of Cincinnati Health (UC Health) is the healthcare system of the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio. It trains health care professionals and provides research and patient care. The system is affiliated with the University via ...

(1993). Elected to the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. It is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), along with the National Academ ...

(1995). National Academy of Engineering Fritz J. and Dolores H.

Russ Prize The Fritz J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize is an American national and international award established by the United States National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in October 1999 in Athens. Named after Fritz Russ, the founder of Systems Research Labor ...

(2005).

Selected publications

* Clark, L.C., Wolf, R., Granger, D., Taylor, Z. (1953). Continuous recording of blood oxygen tensions by polarography. ''Journal of Applied Physiology'', 6: 189-193. * Clark, L.C., Gollan, F. (1966). Survival of mammals breathing organic liquids equilibrated with oxygen at atmospheric pressure. ''Science'', 152:1755–1756.

References

External links

*
Memorial Tributes: National Academy of Engineering, Volume 11 (2007) p. 58
*
Oxygen Biotherapeutics, Inc. website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Leland 20th-century American chemists Antioch College alumni Biosensors 1918 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American inventors University of Rochester alumni