Alexander s wiener biography of william

Alexander S. Wiener - Biography

Alexander Solomon Wiener (March 16, - November 6, ), a lifelong resident of New York City, was recognized internationally for his contributions to medicine.

  • Alexander S. Wiener brief bio
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  • He was an outstanding leader in the fields of forensic medicine, serology, and immunogenetics. His pioneer work led to discovery of the Rh factor in , along with Dr. Karl Landsteiner, and subsequently to the development of exchange transfusion methods that saved the lives of countless infants with hemolytic disease of the newborn.

    He received a Lasker Award for his achievement in

    Life

    Alexander Solomon Wiener was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of George Wiener, an attorney who had emigrated from Russia in , and Mollie (Zuckerman) Wiener. He attended Brooklyn public schools, graduating from Brooklyn Boys' High School at the age of He was awarded scholarships to attend Cornell University where he continued his study of mathematics and even contributed mathematical problems to the American Mathematical Monthly.

    He majored in biology, however, receiving his A.B. in He then entered the Long Island College of Medicine where he was awarded an M.D. in

    During his time in medical school Wiener did research work on blood groups at the Jewish Hospital of Brooklyn and from to he interned there and kept up a lifelong affiliation with that institution as the head of the Division of Genetics and Biometrics () and as the head of the blood transfusion division until Since he had a medical practice and in he founded the Wiener Laboratories for clinical pathology and blood grouping.

    In he became a member of the Department of Forensic Medicine of New York University School of Medicine, rising to the rank of professor by Since the s he co-operated with the office of the Chief Medical Examiner of New York City.

    Wiener was a good pianist and he also enjoyed tennis and golf.

    Alexander s wiener biography of william So although he was incorrect to theorize that only one gene was involved, the principle that a single gene can have multiple alleles, a revolutionary idea at the time, has proven true. Nomenclature and genetics [ edit ]. This encouraged them in their quest to create a blood "fingerprint," a unique blood profile that could be used in legal and criminal matters. Kohelet

    He kept up his his life-long interest in mathematics and physics by reading in these areas. In recognition of his contribution to forensic medicine he was awarded an honorary membership of the Mystery Writers of America.

    In Wiener married Gertrude Rodman and they had two daughters, Jane and Barbara. Wiener died of leukemia in New York on 6 November

    Important contributions in hematology

    Blood "fingerprinting"

    Wiener began working with Landsteiner at the age of 23, shortly after beginning his work at Brooklyn Jewish Hospital, where he remained for the rest of his life.

    Much of their initial work revolved around the M Factor, which they discovered was actually five different, distinct blood factors.

    Alexander S. Wiener brief bio: Although the first time Rh positive blood is transfused into someone with Rh negative blood, it may not cause any harm, it does cause the creation of antibodies which make a second such transfusion very dangerous. Wiener's work in criminology. Wiener and Dr. Alexander S.

    This encouraged them in their quest to create a blood "fingerprint," a unique blood profile that could be used in legal and criminal matters. Wiener pioneered much of the type of blood testing that has now, in the age of DNA, become commonplace . Along with his work in his Brooklyn lab, Wiener also did a considerable amount of work in a Manhattan lab where he concentrated on forensics, assisting the police in numerous investigations by analyzing the blood (or related fluids) of those involved.

    Numerous articles and chapters of books with real life crime stories were written about Dr. Wiener's work in criminology.

    See full list on jewage.org Additional recommended knowledge Guide to balance cleaning: 8 simple steps How to quickly check pipettes? Numerous articles and chapters of books with real life crime stories were written about Dr. Read Edit View history. The method was further refined by Dr.

    Along with his father, George Wiener, a lawyer. Wiener helped draft a new set of laws addressing the recent scientific advancements in blood identification. He was a member of the American Medical Association legal committee that sponsored blood test laws in all states, and he was the co-author of its report. His work in the genetics of the blood factors also allowed him to be of assistance in many paternity cases.

    He was eventually made an honorary member of the Mystery Writers of America for his work.

    Rh factor

    When Wiener and Landsteiner discovered the Rh factor in (named after the Rhesus monkeys used as test subjects), they did not immediately realize its significance.

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  • Alexander Wiener Biography (1907-1976) - FAQs
  • It was seen as yet another factor, not much different from the M, N, or P factors--useful for "fingerprinting," but not having much more extended implications. However, Wiener soon realized that the new blood factor they had discovered was associated with problems in blood transfusions. Although the first time Rh positive blood is transfused into someone with Rh negative blood, it may not cause any harm, it does cause the creation of antibodies which make a second such transfusion very dangerous.

    By the time he and Landsteiner published in , Wiener was able to demonstrate the role of Rh sensitization as a cause of intragroup hemolytic reactions, thus increasing the safety of blood transfusions.

    Also, in conjunction with Philip Levine's separate work which helped identify the Rh factor as a major cause of erythroblastosis fetalis, or Rh disease, he was able to help solve a major cause of infant fatality.

    Dr. Wiener created the first medical procedure to combat the problem, which he called an exchange transfusion.

    See full list on jewage.org Much of their initial work revolved around the M Factor, which they discovered was actually five different, distinct blood factors. Find sources: "Alexander S. Contents 1 Blood "fingerprinting" 2 Rhesus factor 3 Nomenclature and genetics 4 References. Wikidata item.

    It consisted of a complete blood transfusion for the affected baby. The method was further refined by Harry Wallerstein, a transfusionist.

    Since then, less extreme methods have been found to deal with erythroblastosis fetalis. However, at the time, the procedure was able to save over , lives.

    Nomenclature and genetics

    A lot of Wiener's later work involved examining the genetics of the Rh factor.

    In the process, he became embroiled in controversy, as an alternative theory, the so called CDE-nomenclature was proposed by Robert Russell Race und Ronald Fisher, hence also called Race-Fisher theory, which was somewhat simpler to understand.

    See full list on jewage.org He kept up his lifelong interest in mathematics and physics by reading in these areas. A lot of Dr. Read what you need to know about our industry portal bionity. Wiener pioneered much of the type of blood testing that has now, in the age of DNA, become commonplace.

    Although Wiener's theories on the genetics of the Rh factor have recently proven to be closer to the actual DNA structure of the genes (though the truth lies somewhere between the two theories), there are still many who have adopted the CDE notations.
    Wiener's theory is that Rh inheritance is controlled as follows: There is one Rh locus at which occurs one Rh gene, but this gene has multiple alleles.

    For example, one gene R1 produces one agglutinogen (antigen) Rh1 which is composed of three "factors": rh', Rh(o), and hr' '. The three factors are analogous to C, D, and e respectively in the CDE nomenclature. The d gene does not exist in Wiener's theory, and, in fact, has been proven not to exist at all.

    In fact, it has recently been proven that there are two connected genes, one of which has multiple specificities, as Wiener theorized.

    So although he was incorrect to theorize that there was only one gene involved, the principle that a single gene can have multiple alleles, a revolutionary idea at the time, has proven true.

    Awards

    • Albert Lasker Award for clinical research awarded jointly with Karl Landsteiner and Philip Levine
    • Passano Foundation Award

    Publications

    • Rh-Hr Blood Types, New York
    • with Irving Bernard Wexler: Heredity of the Blood Groups, New York
    • with Karl Landsteiner: An agglutinable factor in human blood recognized by immune sera for rhesus blood. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med ;

    Further reading

    • Addine Erskine The Principles and Practices of Blood Grouping, ISBN
    • Pauline M.

      H. Mazumdar Species and Specificity:An Interpretation of the History of Immunology, Cambridge University Press, ISBN

    • David R. Zimmerman, Rh: The Intimate History of a Disease and Its Conquest Macmillan () ISBN
    • Edward Radin, Twelve Against Crime, Specifically Chapter 8, "Master of Invisible Clues."

    External links






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