Medicine
James Black
Pharmacologist, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1988 for beta blockers
Born 1924 · Died 2010
Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author · CC BY 4.0
«The most fruitful basis for the discovery of a new drug is to start with an old drug.»
James Black invented propranolol, the first beta blocker, which transformed the treatment of heart disease, and then cimetidine, which did the same for stomach ulcers. Both were among the best-selling drugs in the world.
Key achievements
- Nobel Prize in Medicine, 1988, for beta blockers
- Invented propranolol and cimetidine, both global best-sellers
Universities
London
Professor of analytical pharmacology at King's College London from 1984.
St Andrews, Fife, Scotland
Studied medicine from 1946, having won a scholarship after sitting the entrance exam on a friend's dare.
Facts
- He sat the St Andrews entrance examination only because a friend dared him to, and won a scholarship that paid for everything.
- He designed his drugs by reasoning about what receptors must do, rather than by screening thousands of compounds.
- He is credited with saving more lives than almost any other pharmacologist of the twentieth century.