Ume (Umeko) Tange (; 1873–1955) was one of the first three women admitted to a Japanese university in 1913. She previously studied at a women's college. After graduating from university, she traveled to the US to study, gaining a PhD in chemistry from

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

in 1927, one of the first Japanese women awarded a doctorate in science. Tange returned to Japan to teach and do further research at RIKEN, studying vitamins, especially vitamin B2. She gained a second doctorate, in agricultural science, in 1940, from

Tokyo Imperial University The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public university, public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several Edo peri ...

(now the University of Tokyo).

Early life and education

Ume Tange was the sixth child of seven siblings in a prosperous family in

Kagoshima , is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 583,966 in 285,992 households, and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Etymology While the ...

, southern Japan. She was born on March 17, 1873. While playing with one of her sisters, Tange was injured when she fell on a chopstick, losing the sight in one eye. Tange began her career as a primary school teacher. In 1901, when she was 28, Tange began studying home economics at a women's college,

Japan Women's University is the oldest and largest of private Japanese women's universities. The university was established on 20 April 1901 by education reformist . The university has around 6000 students and 200 faculty. It has two campuses, named after the neighbo ...

. After graduating, she worked as an assistant there, and became the first woman to pass the secondary teacher examination in chemistry. In 1913, she was one of the first three women admitted to university study in Japan, when she began studies at

Tohoku Imperial University is a public research university in Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. It is colloquially referred to as or . Established in 1907 as the third of the Imperial Universities, after the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University, it initially focused on scien ...

along with chemist Chika Kuroda and mathematician Raku Makita, despite controversy.

Scientific career

Tange studied Japan's persimmon tannin while at

. After graduating, at 45 years of age, Tange went to the US to study, spending about 10 years there, including time at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

and

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 ...

. Her studies there were sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of Education and Home Ministry. At Johns Hopkins, she was awarded a PhD in 1927, with a thesis entitled ''The preparation and properties of the alophanates of certain sterols''. Results of this work were published with

Elmer McCollum Elmer Verner McCollum (March 3, 1879 – November 15, 1967) was an American biochemist known for his work on the influence of diet on health.Kruse, 1961. McCollum is also remembered for starting the first rat colony in the United States to be us ...

in the ''

Journal of Biological Chemistry The ''Journal of Biological Chemistry'' (''JBC'') is a weekly peer-reviewed scientific journal that was established in 1905., jbc.org Since 1925, it is published by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. It covers research i ...

'' in 1928. Tange returned to Japan and taught at Japan Women's University and in 1930 began studies of the vitamin B2 at the

RIKEN is a national scientific research institute in Japan. Founded in 1917, it now has about 3,000 scientists on seven campuses across Japan, including the main site at Wakō, Saitama, Wakō, Saitama Prefecture, on the outskirts of Tokyo. Riken is a ...

Institute of Physical and Chemical Research. This work led to her second doctorate, in agriculture, from

in 1940. Tange published multiple scientific papers in the 1930s, including studies on dietary deficiencies in rats on fat-free diets, vitamin B2 deficiencies in rats, and the effects of fatty acids on nutrition.

Honors

* Monument in her birthplace, Kagoshima (pictured). * Statue in front of the Yamakataya department store, Kagoshima. * Tange Memorial Scholarship at Japan Women's University for students excelling in science studies. * Biography published by The Chemical Daily (in Japanese) in 2011, ''Like White Plum Blossoms: Trajectory of Chemist Ume Tange.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tange, Ume 1873 births 1955 deaths 20th-century Japanese women scientists Japanese women chemists Scientists with disabilities People from Kagoshima Scientists from Kagoshima Prefecture 20th-century Japanese chemists