Sarah Ratner (June 9, 1903 – July 28, 1999) was an American biochemist. Her contributions to the study of nitrogen metabolism led to a better understanding of human disorders in urea synthesis. In 1961, Ratner was awarded the
Garvan–Olin Medal
The Francis P. Garvan–John M. Olin Medal is an annual award that recognizes distinguished scientific accomplishment, leadership and service to chemistry by women chemists. The Award is offered by the American Chemical Society (ACS), and consis ...
from the
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 ...
and was elected to the
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, 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 Nat ...
in 1974.
Early life
Ratner's parents were Russian-Jewish immigrants who came to the United States in the late 1900s. Her father, Aaron Ratner owned a manufacturing business. Along with her twin brother, Sarah was born June 9, 1903, in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
. She was the youngest child and only girl among the five children. Her father provided her with the same academic education as her brothers, but she became the only family member who pursued a scholarly career.
Career
Ratner received a scholarship to
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...
in 1920 as a
chemistry major. As the only woman in most of her classes, and due to her shy nature, she had a difficult time sharing her experiences and ideas with her colleagues. After graduating in 1924, Ratner was employed in a Pediatrics laboratory at
Long Island College Hospital
University Hospital of Brooklyn at Long Island College Hospital (or LICH) was a 506-bed teaching hospital located in the Brooklyn Heights and Cobble Hill neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York. The hospital was founded in 1858 as Long Island Coll ...
in New York City.
As a graduate student, Ratner gravitated towards biochemistry, which in the early 1930s was mainly preoccupied with
physiology
Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemic ...
and
organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the science, scientific study of the structure, properties, and reactions of organic compounds and organic materials, i.e., matter in its various forms that contain carbon atoms.Clay ...
. She was accepted as a Ph.D. student by
Hans Thacher Clarke
Hans Thacher Clarke (27 December 1887 – 21 October 1972) was a prominent biochemist during the first half of the twentieth century. He was born in England where he received his university training, but also studied in Germany and Ireland. He sp ...
in the Department of Biochemistry at the
College of Physicians and Surgeons at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
. The admission requirement to the department at the time was simply to "survive an interview with H.T.
larke
Larke is a surname. Notable people with the name include:
*Alex Larke (born 1979), British singer
*Glenda Larke, Australian writer
*Joan Larke (c.1490–1532), English mistress
*John Larke (c.1500–1544), English priest
*John Short Larke (1840– ...
at the end of which the potential student was immediately informed of the outcome." In 1932, in collaboration with C. A. Weymuller, she published a study of ''the acid-base metabolism of a normal child on diets that increase in fat content''. Together, they discussed the "seventeen different analytical methods were used for determination of a wide variety of parameters in blood serum and feces."
After receiving her doctorate, Ratner had difficulty obtaining a research position because of her gender.
Eventually she was hired by
Rudolf Schoenheimer of the College of Physicians and Surgeons to investigate the metabolic processes of nitrogen compounds.
From 1937 to 1939 Ratner worked under a
Josiah Macy, Jr. Foundation
The Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, or Macy Foundation, is a philanthropic foundation founded in 1930 by Kate Macy Ladd (1863–1945) in honor of her father, Josiah W. Macy Jr.
Captain Josiah W. Macy Jr. (c. 1837 – October 5, 1876) was an Amer ...
Research Fellowship, and from 1939 to 1946 she earned the
academic titles of instructor and assistant professor at Columbia University.
Following her work in 1942 with
David E. Green on amino- and hydroxy acid oxidases, and on a peptide form of
p-aminobenzoic acid,
[Bentley, p.227] she became interested in new aspects of nitrogen metabolism. In 1946, Ratner was hired as an assistant professor of pharmacology at the
New York University School of Medicine
NYU Grossman School of Medicine is a medical school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1841 and is one of two medical schools of the university, with the other being the Long Island Schoo ...
. The following year she published a book on the mechanism of the formation of
arginine
Arginine is the amino acid with the formula (H2N)(HN)CN(H)(CH2)3CH(NH2)CO2H. The molecule features a guanidino group appended to a standard amino acid framework. At physiological pH, the carboxylic acid is deprotonated (−CO2−) and both the a ...
from
citrulline
The organic compound citrulline is an α-amino acid. Its name is derived from '' citrullus'', the Latin word for watermelon. Although named and described by gastroenterologists since the late 19th century, it was first isolated from watermelon in 1 ...
, a subject which would occupy her studies for the next four decades. She was elected a Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, ...
in 1974.
Ratner became a staff member of the Department of Biochemistry at the
Public Health Research Institute of New York in the mid-1950s. She retired in 1992 at the age of 89.
Honors
*Carl Neuberg Medal, American Society of European Chemists and Pharmacists (1959)
*
Garvan–Olin Medal
The Francis P. Garvan–John M. Olin Medal is an annual award that recognizes distinguished scientific accomplishment, leadership and service to chemistry by women chemists. The Award is offered by the American Chemical Society (ACS), and consis ...
, American Chemical Society (1961)
*Fellow, National Academy of Sciences (1974)
*Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1974)
*Freedman Award in Biochemistry, New York Academy of Sciences (1975)
Selected works
*"Biosynthesis of Urea. I. Enzymatic Mechanism of Arginine Synthesis from Citrulline" (Ratner, S., and Pappas, A. (1949) ''J. Biol. Chem.'' 179, 1183–1198)⇓
*"Biosynthesis of Urea. VI. Enzymatic Cleavage of Argininosuccinic Acid to Arginine and Fumaric Acid" (Ratner, S., Anslow, W. P., Jr., and Petrack, B. (1953) ''J. Biol. Chem.'' 204, 115–125)
References
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratner, Sarah
1903 births
1999 deaths
Cornell University alumni
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
American women biochemists
Jewish American scientists
20th-century American women scientists
Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni
20th-century American chemists
Jewish chemists
20th-century American Jews