Roger Altounyan
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Roger Edward Collingwood Altounyan (1922-1987) was a Syrian-born Armenian physician and pharmacologist who pioneered the use of sodium cromoglycate as a remedy for asthma.
Starting with khellin, a traditional Middle Eastern remedy for asthma, he discovered in 1965 that khellin's active ingredient was sodium cromoglycate. This was later marketed as Intal by Fisons, now part of AstraZeneca.
He has been voted as one of the top 1000 scientists of all time in the book Top 1000 Scientists: From the Beginning of Time to 2000 AD by Philip Barker.
During childhood, his family visited the Lake District where they met the writer Arthur Ransome. Ransome named the primary characters in his famous book, Swallows and Amazons, after Altounyan and his three sisters.
[edit] References
- National Institutes of Health: Breath Exhibit
- Beehive. Describes the book by Rodney Dingle entitled "Roger, The life and distinguished achievements of Dr. Roger Altounyan".
- Orr TS. "Roger Altounyan: the man and his work." Respir Med. 1989 May;83 Suppl A:3-6.
- Cohen SG. "Asthma among the famous. Roger E. C. Altounyan (1922-1987) British physician and pharmacologist." Allergy Asthma Proc. 1998 Sep-Oct;19(5):328-32.