Lavoslav Ružicka
Encyclopedia
Lavoslav Ružička FRS born as Lavoslav ( Leopold ) Ružička (13 September 1887 – 26 September 1976) was a Croatian
scientist and winner of the 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
who worked most of his life in Switzerland
. He received eight honoris causa doctorates in science, medicine, and law; seven prizes and medals; and twenty-four honorary memberships in chemical, biochemical, and other scientific societies.
, Croatia
, then part of Kingdom of Hungary
, Austro-Hungarian Empire. His family of craftsmen and farmers was mostly of Croatian
origin, with a Czech great grandparent, and a great grandmother and a great grandfather from Austria
.
Ružička attended the classics-program secondary school in Osijek
. He changed his original idea
of becoming a priest and switched to studying technical disciplines. Chemistry
was his choice, probably because he hoped to get a position at the newly opened sugar refinery
built in Osijek.
Due to the excessive hardship of everyday and political life, he left and chose the High Technical School in Karlsruhe
in Germany
. He was a good student
in areas he liked and that he thought would be necessary and beneficial in future, which was organic chemistry
. That is why his physical chemistry
professor, Fritz Haber
(Nobel laureate in 1918), opposed his summa cum laude degree
. However, in the course of his studies, Ružička set up excellent cooperation with Hermann Staudinger
(a Nobel laureate in 1953). Studying within Staudinger's department, he obtained his doctor's degree in 1910. With Staudinger, Ružička went to Zurich
and was his assistant.
n insect
powder (Pyrethrum cinerariifolium), a highly esteemed insecticide
. In this way, he came into contact with the chemistry of terpene
, a fragrant oil of vegetable origin, interesting to the perfume
industry
. He intended to start individual research and even started successful and productive cooperation with the Chuit & Naef Company (later known as Firmenich
) in Geneva
.
In 1916-1917, he received the support of the oldest perfume manufacturer in the world
Haarman & Reimer, of Holzminden in Germany. With expertise in the terpene field, he became senior lecturer in 1918, and in 1923, honorary professor at the ETH
(Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule) as well the University
in Zurich. Here, with a group of his doctoral students, he proved the structure and existence of the compounds of muscone
and civet
, the scents derived from the musk deer and the civet cat. The Ruzicka large ring synthesis
is a method in organic chemistry
for the organic synthesis
of these type of compounds.
In 1921, the Geneva perfume manufacturers Chuit & Naef asked him to collaborate. Working here, Ružička achieved financial independence, but not as big as he did plan so he left Zurich to start working for the Ciba, Basel
- based company. In 1927, he took over the organic chemistry chair at Utrecht University
in Netherlands
. In Netherlands he remained for three years, and then returned to Switzerland
, which was superior in its chemical industry.
Back to Zurich, at ETH he became professor
of organic chemistry and started the most brilliant period of his professional career. He widened the area of his research
, adding to it the chemistry of higher terpenes and steroids. After the successful synthesis of sex hormones (androsterone
and testosterone
), his laboratory
became the world center of organic chemistry.
In 1939, he won the Nobel prize
for chemistry with Adolf Butenandt
. In 1940, following the award, he was invited by the Croatian Chemical Association, where he delivered a lecture to an over packed hall of dignitaries. The topic of the lecture was From the Dalmatian Insect Powder to Sex Hormones. During the World War II
, some of his excellent collaborators were lost, but Ružička restructured his laboratory with new, younger and promising people; among them was young scientist Vladimir Prelog
. With new people and ideas new research areas were opened.
Following 1950, Ružička returned to chemistry, which had entered a new era of research. Now he turned to the field of biochemistry
, the problems of evolution
and genesis of life, particularly to the biogenesis
of terpenes. He published his hypothesis, Biogenetic Isoprene Rule, which was the peak of his scientific career. Ružička retired in 1957, turning over the running of the laboratory to his assistant and future Nobel laureate Vladimir Prelog
.
Ružička dedicated significant efforts to the problems of education
. He insisted on a better organization of academic education and scientific work in the new Yugoslavia
, and established the Swiss-Yugoslav Society. Ružička became an honorary academician
at the then Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts in Zagreb
. In Switzerland
, the Ružička Award was established, for young chemists working in Switzerland. In his native Vukovar
, a museum
was opened in his honour in 1977.
, Switzerland
, a village on Lake Constance
.
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
scientist and winner of the 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
who worked most of his life in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. He received eight honoris causa doctorates in science, medicine, and law; seven prizes and medals; and twenty-four honorary memberships in chemical, biochemical, and other scientific societies.
Biography
Ružička was born in VukovarVukovar
Vukovar is a city in eastern Croatia, and the biggest river port in Croatia located at the confluence of the Vuka river and the Danube. Vukovar is the center of the Vukovar-Syrmia County...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, then part of Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
, Austro-Hungarian Empire. His family of craftsmen and farmers was mostly of Croatian
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
origin, with a Czech great grandparent, and a great grandmother and a great grandfather from Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
.
Ružička attended the classics-program secondary school in Osijek
Osijek
Osijek is the fourth largest city in Croatia with a population of 83,496 in 2011. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja county...
. He changed his original idea
Idea
In the most narrow sense, an idea is just whatever is before the mind when one thinks. Very often, ideas are construed as representational images; i.e. images of some object. In other contexts, ideas are taken to be concepts, although abstract concepts do not necessarily appear as images...
of becoming a priest and switched to studying technical disciplines. Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
was his choice, probably because he hoped to get a position at the newly opened sugar refinery
Sugar refinery
A sugar refinery is a factory which refines raw sugar.Many cane sugar mills produce raw sugar, i.e. sugar with more colour and therefore more impurities than the white sugar which is normally consumed in households and used as an ingredient in soft drinks, cookies and so forth...
built in Osijek.
Due to the excessive hardship of everyday and political life, he left and chose the High Technical School in Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He was a good student
Student
A student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...
in areas he liked and that he thought would be necessary and beneficial in future, which was organic chemistry
Organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation of carbon-based compounds, hydrocarbons, and their derivatives...
. That is why his physical chemistry
Physical chemistry
Physical chemistry is the study of macroscopic, atomic, subatomic, and particulate phenomena in chemical systems in terms of physical laws and concepts...
professor, Fritz Haber
Fritz Haber
Fritz Haber was a German chemist, who received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1918 for his development for synthesizing ammonia, important for fertilizers and explosives. Haber, along with Max Born, proposed the Born–Haber cycle as a method for evaluating the lattice energy of an ionic solid...
(Nobel laureate in 1918), opposed his summa cum laude degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
. However, in the course of his studies, Ružička set up excellent cooperation with Hermann Staudinger
Hermann Staudinger
- External links :* Staudinger's * Staudinger's Nobel Lecture *....
(a Nobel laureate in 1953). Studying within Staudinger's department, he obtained his doctor's degree in 1910. With Staudinger, Ružička went to Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
and was his assistant.
Work and research
Ružička's first works originated during that period in the field of chemistry of natural compounds. He remained in this field of research all his life. He investigated the ingredients of the DalmatiaDalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
n insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
powder (Pyrethrum cinerariifolium), a highly esteemed insecticide
Insecticide
An insecticide is a pesticide used against insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against the eggs and larvae of insects respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and the household. The use of insecticides is believed to be one of the major factors behind...
. In this way, he came into contact with the chemistry of terpene
Terpene
Terpenes are a large and diverse class of organic compounds, produced by a variety of plants, particularly conifers, though also by some insects such as termites or swallowtail butterflies, which emit terpenes from their osmeterium. They are often strong smelling and thus may have had a protective...
, a fragrant oil of vegetable origin, interesting to the perfume
Perfume
Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and/or aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, animals, objects, and living spaces "a pleasant scent"...
industry
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
. He intended to start individual research and even started successful and productive cooperation with the Chuit & Naef Company (later known as Firmenich
Firmenich
Firmenich SA is a private Swiss company in the perfume and flavor business, it is the largest privately-owned company in the perfume and flavor business, and ranks number two worldwide., Firmenich has created many of the world’s favorite perfumes for over 100 years and produced a number of the most...
) in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
.
In 1916-1917, he received the support of the oldest perfume manufacturer in the world
World
World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide, i.e. anywhere on Earth....
Haarman & Reimer, of Holzminden in Germany. With expertise in the terpene field, he became senior lecturer in 1918, and in 1923, honorary professor at the ETH
ETH Zurich
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich or ETH Zürich is an engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management university in the City of Zurich, Switzerland....
(Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule) as well the University
University of Zurich
The University of Zurich , located in the city of Zurich, is the largest university in Switzerland, with over 25,000 students. It was founded in 1833 from the existing colleges of theology, law, medicine and a new faculty of philosophy....
in Zurich. Here, with a group of his doctoral students, he proved the structure and existence of the compounds of muscone
Muscone
Muscone is an organic compound that is the primary contributor to the odor of musk.The chemical structure of muscone was first elucidated by Lavoslav Ružička. It consists of a 15-membered ring ketone with one methyl substituent in the 3-position. It is an oily liquid that is found naturally as...
and civet
Civet
The family Viverridae is made up of around 30 species of medium-sized mammal, including all of the genets, the binturong, most of the civets, and the two African linsangs....
, the scents derived from the musk deer and the civet cat. The Ruzicka large ring synthesis
Ruzicka large ring synthesis
The Ruzicka large ring synthesis or Ruzicka reaction or Ruzicka cyclization is an organic reaction in which a dicarboxylic acid is converted to a cyclic ketone at high temperature and a suitable catalyst such as thorium oxide...
is a method in organic chemistry
Organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation of carbon-based compounds, hydrocarbons, and their derivatives...
for the organic synthesis
Organic synthesis
Organic synthesis is a special branch of chemical synthesis and is concerned with the construction of organic compounds via organic reactions. Organic molecules can often contain a higher level of complexity compared to purely inorganic compounds, so the synthesis of organic compounds has...
of these type of compounds.
In 1921, the Geneva perfume manufacturers Chuit & Naef asked him to collaborate. Working here, Ružička achieved financial independence, but not as big as he did plan so he left Zurich to start working for the Ciba, Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
- based company. In 1927, he took over the organic chemistry chair at Utrecht University
Utrecht University
Utrecht University is a university in Utrecht, Netherlands. It is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands and one of the largest in Europe. Established March 26, 1636, it had an enrollment of 29,082 students in 2008, and employed 8,614 faculty and staff, 570 of which are full professors....
in Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. In Netherlands he remained for three years, and then returned to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, which was superior in its chemical industry.
Back to Zurich, at ETH he became professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of organic chemistry and started the most brilliant period of his professional career. He widened the area of his research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
, adding to it the chemistry of higher terpenes and steroids. After the successful synthesis of sex hormones (androsterone
Androsterone
Androsterone is a steroid hormone with weak androgenic activity. It is made in the liver from the metabolism of testosterone. Its beta-isomer is Epiandrosterone.-History:...
and testosterone
Testosterone
Testosterone is a steroid hormone from the androgen group and is found in mammals, reptiles, birds, and other vertebrates. In mammals, testosterone is primarily secreted in the testes of males and the ovaries of females, although small amounts are also secreted by the adrenal glands...
), his laboratory
Laboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
became the world center of organic chemistry.
In 1939, he won the Nobel prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
for chemistry with Adolf Butenandt
Adolf Butenandt
Adolf Friedrich Johann Butenandt was a German biochemist and member of the Nazi party. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1939 for his "work on sex hormones." He initially rejected the award in accordance with government policy, but accepted it in 1949 after World War...
. In 1940, following the award, he was invited by the Croatian Chemical Association, where he delivered a lecture to an over packed hall of dignitaries. The topic of the lecture was From the Dalmatian Insect Powder to Sex Hormones. During the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, some of his excellent collaborators were lost, but Ružička restructured his laboratory with new, younger and promising people; among them was young scientist Vladimir Prelog
Vladimir Prelog
Vladimir Prelog FRS was a Croatian chemist and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry. Prelog lived and worked in Prague, Zagreb and Zürich during his lifetime.-Biography:...
. With new people and ideas new research areas were opened.
Following 1950, Ružička returned to chemistry, which had entered a new era of research. Now he turned to the field of biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
, the problems of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
and genesis of life, particularly to the biogenesis
Biogenesis
Biogenesis is the law that living things come only from other living things, e.g. a spider lays eggs, which develop into spiders. It may also refer to biochemical processes of production in living organisms.-Spontaneous generation:...
of terpenes. He published his hypothesis, Biogenetic Isoprene Rule, which was the peak of his scientific career. Ružička retired in 1957, turning over the running of the laboratory to his assistant and future Nobel laureate Vladimir Prelog
Vladimir Prelog
Vladimir Prelog FRS was a Croatian chemist and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry. Prelog lived and worked in Prague, Zagreb and Zürich during his lifetime.-Biography:...
.
Ružička dedicated significant efforts to the problems of education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
. He insisted on a better organization of academic education and scientific work in the new Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
, and established the Swiss-Yugoslav Society. Ružička became an honorary academician
Academician
The title Academician denotes a Full Member of an art, literary, or scientific academy.In many countries, it is an honorary title. There also exists a lower-rank title, variously translated Corresponding Member or Associate Member, .-Eastern Europe and China:"Academician" may also be a functional...
at the then Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
. In Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, the Ružička Award was established, for young chemists working in Switzerland. In his native Vukovar
Vukovar
Vukovar is a city in eastern Croatia, and the biggest river port in Croatia located at the confluence of the Vuka river and the Danube. Vukovar is the center of the Vukovar-Syrmia County...
, a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
was opened in his honour in 1977.
Personal life
Ružička married twice: to Anna Hausmann in 1912, and 1951 to Gertrud Acklin. He died in MammernMammern
Mammern is a municipality in Frauenfeld District in the canton of Thurgau, Switzerland, on Lake Constance.-History:Finds from the Neolithic Age, Bronze Age and the Early Middle Ages show that there was a continuous settlement in the area. The modern village of Mammern is first mentioned in 909 as...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, a village on Lake Constance
Lake Constance
Lake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...
.