Alfred G. Gilman
Who was Alfred G. Gilman?
Nobel laureate: Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (1994)
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Alfred G. Gilman (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Alfred Goodman Gilman (July 1, 1941 – December 23, 2015) was an American pharmacologist and biochemist who transformed our understanding of how cells communicate by discovering G-proteins. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, he was the son of Alfred Gilman, co-author of the important medical textbook Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics. His middle name was in honor of Louis S. Goodman, his father's co-author of the book.
Gilman graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in biology, majoring in biochemistry from Yale University in 1962. Right after graduating, he worked with Allan Conney at Burroughs Wellcome & Company, where he published his first two technical papers. Influenced by Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr., he entered an MD-PhD program at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, finishing in 1969. He then did postdoctoral research at the National Institutes of Health under Marshall Nirenberg from 1969 to 1971.
He started his academic career at the University of Virginia School of Medicine as an assistant professor of pharmacology in 1971, becoming a full professor by 1977. In 1981, he became chairman of the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, staying there until he retired in 2009. After retiring, he worked as chief scientific officer of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas until 2012.
Gilman's pioneering research was on how cells transmit signals, building on Martin Rodbell's work showing that GTP was involved in cellular signaling. While Rodbell had identified GTP's role, Gilman discovered and described the proteins that worked with GTP to start signaling processes within cells. These proteins, known as G-proteins, are vital links between cell membrane receptors and the responses inside cells. This discovery changed the way we understand cellular communication and response to external signals, earning him and Rodbell the 1994 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Before Fame
Growing up in a family immersed in pharmacological research, Gilman was introduced to scientific inquiry early on through his father's work on a key medical reference text. The 1940s and 1950s were a time of rapid progress in biochemistry and molecular biology, as scientists began to grasp the basic mechanisms of life at the cellular level.
Cell biology was booming during Gilman's early years, thanks to new technologies and methods that let researchers delve deeper into cellular functions. His early exposure to pharmacology, combined with this emerging understanding of cellular processes, made him well-suited to contribute to the molecular biology revolution that defined the latter half of the 20th century.
Key Achievements
- Discovery and characterization of G-proteins and their role in cellular signal transduction
- Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (1994) shared with Martin Rodbell
- Founding of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, a major biotechnology company
- Establishment of the Alliance for Cellular Signaling research consortium
- Multiple prestigious scientific awards including the Albert Lasker Award and Canada Gairdner International Award
Did You Know?
- 01.He was named after his father's research partner Louis S. Goodman, reflecting the close collaboration that produced one of medicine's most enduring textbooks
- 02.His first scientific papers were published immediately after graduating from Yale, while working at the pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome
- 03.He founded Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, which became one of the most successful biotechnology companies in the world
- 04.From 2005, he served as a director of Eli Lilly and Company, one of the largest pharmaceutical corporations globally
- 05.He established the Alliance for Cellular Signaling, a collaborative research initiative to map cellular communication networks
Awards & Honors
| Award | Year | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine | 1994 | for their discovery of G-proteins and the role of these proteins in signal transduction in cells |
| Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research | 1989 | — |
| Canada Gairdner International Award | 1984 | — |
| Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize | 1989 | — |
| John J. Abel Award | 1975 | — |
| Richard Lounsbery Award | 1987 | — |
| honorary doctor of the University of Miami | 1999 | — |