Research and backgrounds

Source; Chemistryworld 19 januari 2022 newsletter ;

Monstrous egos and toxic rivalries: the race to treat diabetes with insulin

THE CONVERSATION | 19 MINUTE READ

100 years ago this month, insulin was first used to treat diabetes in humans. (Last year marked the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin showing just how quickly the work proceeded.) The subsequent global roll-out of insulin is estimated to have saved the lives of 9 million people with type 1 diabetes. The life-saving miracle that is injectable insulin is already well known. But perhaps less well known are the toxic rivalries that marred this remarkable discovery. Members of the Canadian team, which were admittedly under huge pressure of their own making, were often on the verge of physical altercations and blazing rows weren’t uncommon. Even after two of the team won a Nobel prize for the discovery (just two years later – underlining the importance of the work) the bad blood and back-biting continued as members of the group attempted to cement their place in history and write out others. And as with any discovery there’s also always those who nearly got the credit. From the German doctor whose insulin preparations were so pure they gave patients hypoglycaemia to the Romanian scientist whose published work was overshadowed by the part he played in the Holocaust, it’s all here.