Irwin Fridovich

{{short description|American biochemist (1929-2019)}}

{{Infobox scientist

| name = Irwin Fridovich

| image = Irwin Fridovich in his office.png

| birth_date = {{birth date|1929|8|2}}

| birth_place = New York City, New York, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2019|11|2|1929|8|2}}

| death_place =

| field = Biochemistry

| workplaces = Cornell Medical College, Duke University

| education = City College of New York (BS 1951), Duke University (PhD 1955)

| doctoral_advisor = Philip Handler

| doctoral_students = Joe M. McCord, Hara P. Misra

| known_for = Superoxide dismutase, oxygen free radicals

| awards = Elliott Cresson Medal (1997)

| author_abbreviation_bot =

| author_abbreviation_zoo =

| prizes =

}}

Image:2SOD ribbon colorPencil WhBkgd.png

Irwin Fridovich (August 2, 1929 – November 2, 2019){{cite web | url=https://today.duke.edu/2019/11/duke-flags-lowered-biochemist-irwin-fridovich-dies-age-90 | title=Duke Flags Lowered: Biochemist Irwin Fridovich Dies at Age 90 }} was an American biochemist who, together with his graduate student Joe M. McCord, discovered the enzymatic activity of copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD),{{cite journal |vauthors=McCord JM, Fridovich I |title=Superoxide Dismutase, An Enzymic Function for Erythrocuprein (Hemocuprein) |year=1969 |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry |volume=244 |pages=6049–6055 |pmid=5389100 |issue=22|doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(18)63504-5 |doi-access=free }}{{cite journal |author=Fridovich I |year=1998 |title=The trail to superoxide dismutase |journal=Protein Science |volume=7 |issue=12 |pages=2688–2690 |doi=10.1002/pro.5560071225|pmc=2143889 |pmid=9865966}}—to protect organisms from the toxic effects of superoxide free radicals formed as a byproduct of normal oxygen metabolism.{{cite journal |vauthors=Bannister WH, Bannister JV |title=Isolation and characterization of superoxide dismutase: a personal history and tribute to Joe McCord and Irwin Fridovich |year= 1988|journal=Free Radical Biology and Medicine |volume=5 |issue=5–6 |pages=371–6 |doi=10.1016/0891-5849(88)90110-4|pmid=2855737 }} Subsequently, Fridovich's research group also discovered the manganese-containing{{cite journal |author1=BB Keele Jr |author2=JM McCord |author3=I Fridovich |title= Superoxide Dismutase from Escherichia coli B: A new manganese-containing enzyme |journal= Journal of Biological Chemistry |year= 1970 |volume= 245 |pages= 6176–6181 |pmid= 4921969 |issue=22|doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(18)62675-4 |doi-access= free }} and the iron-containing{{cite journal |author1=FJ Yost Jr |author2=I Fridovich |title= An iron-containing superoxide dismutase from Escherichia coli |journal= Journal of Biological Chemistry |year= 1973 |volume= 248 |pages= 4905–4908 |pmid= 4352182 |issue=14|doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(19)43649-1 |doi-access= free }} SODs from Escherichia coli and the mitochondrial MnSOD (SOD2),{{cite journal |vauthors=Weisiger RA, Fridovich I |title= Superoxide Dismutase: Organelle specificity |year=1973 |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry |volume=248 |issue= 10 |pages=3582–3592|doi= 10.1016/S0021-9258(19)43969-0 |pmid= 4702877 |doi-access=free }} now known to be an essential protein in mammals.{{cite journal |vauthors=McCord JM, Fridovich I | title = Superoxide dismutase: the first twenty years (1968-1988) | journal = Free Radical Biology and Medicine | volume = 5 | issue = 5–6 | pages = 363–9 | year = 1988 | pmid = 2855736 | doi = 10.1016/0891-5849(88)90109-8}} He spent the rest of his career studying the biochemical mechanisms of SOD and of biological superoxide toxicity, using bacteria as model systems.{{cite journal |author=Fridovich I |title=The biology of oxygen radicals |year=1978 |journal=Science |volume=201 |issue=4359 |pages=875–880 |bibcode = 1978Sci...201..875F |doi=10.1126/science.210504 |pmid=210504 }}{{cite journal |author=Fridovich I |title=Superoxide radical and superoxide dismutases |year=1995 |journal=Annual Review of Biochemistry |volume=64 |pages=97–112 |doi= 10.1146/annurev.bi.64.070195.000525 |pmid=7574505 |s2cid=26834871 |url=http://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d57d/3f3985d1cb246e725eb6e384160c46d04db2.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306211313/http://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d57d/3f3985d1cb246e725eb6e384160c46d04db2.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-03-06 }}{{cite journal | url = http://www.jbc.org/content/281/22/e17.full | title = Forty Years of Superoxide Dismutase Research: the Work of Irwin Fridovich (JBC Classics: Enzymology)| author=Kresge N, Simoni RD, Hill RL | year=2006| journal= The Journal of Biological Chemistry| volume=281 |pages=e17 |access-date= July 3, 2011 | issue=22| doi = 10.1016/S0021-9258(20)56010-9| doi-access=free}} Fridovich was also Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry at Duke University.