Henry Friesen

Henry George Friesen, CC OM FRSC (born July 31, 1934) is a Canadian endocrinologist, a distinguished professor emeritus of the University of Manitoba and the discoverer of human prolactin, a hormone which stimulates lactation in mammary glands.

Henry George Friesen
Born (1934-07-31) July 31, 1934
Alma materUniversity of Manitoba
Known forDiscoverer of human prolactin
AwardsOrder of Canada
Order of Manitoba
Scientific career
FieldsEndocrinology
InstitutionsMcGill University
University of Manitoba

Born in Morden, Manitoba, he obtained a Bachelor of Science in medicine and a medical degree from the University of Manitoba in 1958. From 1965 to 1973 he was at McGill University and from 1973 to 1992 he was a professor and head of the department of physiology and professor of medicine at the University of Manitoba.

Dr. Friesen was a recipient of the 1977 Canada Gairdner International Award[1] "In recognition of his contributions to the understanding of the biochemistry, physiology and pathophysiology of lactogenic hormones and, in particular, for the identification of human prolactin."

His research on growth hormones in dwarf children helped in developing a therapy for the treatment of this problem. In addition his work with prolactin helped to develop the drug bromocriptine, used for the treatment of infertility.

From 1991 until 1999 he was president of the Medical Research Council of Canada and helped to transform it into the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. He was president of the National Cancer Institute of Canada and president of the Canadian Society for Clinical Investigation. He is the founding chair of Genome Canada.

Honours

References

  • "Eleven Manitobans to receive Order of Manitoba". Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba. Archived from the original on February 28, 2006. Retrieved April 3, 2005.
  • "Dr. Henry G. Friesen CC OM". University of Manitoba. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved April 3, 2005.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.