Human growth hormone, or HGH, is a common hormone the body produces. However, recombinant HGH has been developed, and people use it to increase their HGH levels. But the question is, who invented HGH? Read more to find out.
Human growth hormone (HGH) is naturally secreted and regulated by the pituitary gland, but the one discovering the HGH synthesis was Choh Hao Li with helps from his fellow scientists, mainly Cyril Norman Hugh Long (1901 – 1970) and Abraham White (1908 – 1980).
The two had previously succeeded in isolating prolactin extracted from cattle in pure crystalline form in 1937 and in 1943 along with George Sayers, porcine adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) which had been purified beforehand.
The invention of HGH has greatly contributed to the biochemistry and molecular endocrinology fields and HGH treatment.
HGH treatment has become an important tool for treating various medical conditions, including growth hormone deficiency,
Turner syndrome, and chronic kidney disease. HGH therapy has also been used off-label for a variety of other purposes, such as anti-aging and athletic performance enhancement.
Li was born on April 21, 1913, in Guangzhou. His parents were incredibly strict to him and his 13 siblings when it came to education.
He had earned his Bachelor of Science degree at Nanking University, where he used to work as a chemistry lecturer for 2 years before he decided to immigrate to the US in 1935.
He studied organic chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, and earned a Ph.D. there in 1938. Li had endured great hardship from the anti-Asian sentiment during the Depression Era for some time until he began to make a breakthrough for his future career when Herbert Evans allowed him to get a job related to the study of endocrinology of the pituitary gland at the Berkeley Institute for Experimental Biology.
He established the Berkeley Hormone Research Laboratory in 1950.
Later, Li and his co-researcher embarked on the pituitary gland hormones. They systematically managed to isolate unique protein enzymes including ACTH adrenocorticotropic hormone.
This hormone is vital for stimulating the adrenal cortex to release corticoids. They managed to demonstrate that ACTH comprises 39 amino acid strands arranged in a specific order.
These are outlined on the Wikipedia website.
Li began his research on growth hormone by isolating it from the pituitary glands of rats. He then turned his attention to human growth hormone, which had never been isolated before.
The challenge was to obtain enough human pituitary glands to conduct the necessary experiments.
Li contacted hospitals and morgues across the country and was able to collect a sufficient number of pituitary glands from deceased donors. He then used a variety of techniques, including chromatography and electrophoresis, to isolate and purify human growth hormone.
In 1944, he announced his discovery of human growth hormone in the journal Science. The discovery was groundbreaking, as it allowed scientists to study the effects of growth hormone on the human body and led to the development of treatments for growth disorders such as dwarfism.
In yet another experiment, Li isolated the MSH melanocyte-stimulating hormone. This is another hormone produced by the pituitary.
This process enabled the team to verify that MSH had certain similarities to ACTH in this effect. Again, parts of the amino acid chain is similar to those of ACTH.
These discoveries expanded Li’s experiment, per an article on Wikipedia.
Li completely managed to isolate HGH in 1955 and synthesize it in 1971. His work in isolating and synthesizing human growth hormone (HGH) was a significant milestone in the field of endocrinology, leading to a better understanding of the role of hormones in human development and growth. Throughout his life, he worked as a biochemist and an endocrinologist focusing on HGH and several other important hormones including luteinizing hormone, beta-endorphin, follicle-stimulating hormone, thyrotropin, prolactin, melanocyte-stimulating hormone, and lipotropin.
Also Li’s work paved the way for further research in these areas and has had a profound impact on the field of endocrinology, leading to the development of new treatments for a wide range of conditions related to hormone imbalances.
His legacy continues to inspire and inform the work of scientists and researchers in this field today.
In addition to his work on growth hormone, Li made many other important contributions to the field of endocrinology. He was the first to discover the hormone thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), which regulates the production of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH).
He also developed techniques for synthesizing hormones, including insulin and parathyroid hormone, which revolutionized the field of hormone research.
Li dedicated his life to biochemistry. His first academic appointment was with the Institute of Experimental Biology. Here, he worked under Herbert Evans.
It took over thirty years to synthesize the human growth hormone. The identification and purification of the HGH, as well as the beta-endorphin, were his most recognized achievements in this field.
This is as per an article on the University of California San Francisco publication.
Li was also known for his generosity and kindness. He was known to go out of his way to help his colleagues and students, and was always willing to share his knowledge and expertise.
He was also a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion in the scientific community, and worked to promote opportunities for underrepresented groups.
Li’s contributions to the field of endocrinology were widely recognized during his lifetime.
He had also received and/or been nominated a lot of scientific awards such as the prestigious Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1982, the Wolf Prize in Medicine in 1985 (including Nobel Prize at least twice), the National Medal of Science, the highest scientific honor in the United States.
In addition, he received the honor of being elected to both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
He also published around 1,100 scientific journals, many of which were groundbreaking in their field and secured several important positions related to his work fields.
He was a professor at the University of California, San Francisco, and served as director of the Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology at the university’s medical center.
He was also a member of the National Academy of Sciences and served on the editorial boards of numerous scientific journals.
He eventually succumbed to cancer on November 28, 1987, survived by his wife and their three children. He believed in nurturing individual talent and creativity, and often pushed his students to think beyond the conventional and take risks in their research.
Many of his former students went on to have successful careers in academia and industry, and credit Li with inspiring and guiding them in their work.
He was renowned for his open-minded teaching methods and encouragement for his students to be as creative and independent as possible.
SIMILAR QUESTION
When Was Hgh First Used?
High-Growth Hormone (HGH) is an essential hormone that is naturally produced in the body. It is primarily responsible for the growth and development of the human body. While it is primarily associated with childhood growth and development, HGH has also been found to have numerous benefits for adults, such as promoting weight loss, increasing muscle mass, and improving skin health.
Since its discovery in the 1920s, HGH has been used in a variety of medical applications, including the treatment of short stature due to growth hormone deficiency. HGH was first used in the 1940s to treat growth hormone deficiency in children. This was the first documented use of the hormone in medical applications.
In the 1950s, HGH was found to be effective in treating a variety of diseases associated with aging, such as diabetes and heart disease. This was the first time that the hormone was used to treat conditions not related to growth and development. Since then, HGH has become a popular treatment for a variety of age-related diseases.
In the 1960s, HGH was also found to be effective in treating a variety of conditions related to growth and development. This included stunted growth in children and delayed puberty in adolescents. In the 1970s, HGH was also used to treat a variety of muscle wasting diseases, including muscular dystrophy.
In the 1980s, HGH was found to be effective in treating a variety of conditions related to aging, such as osteoporosis and sarcopenia. This was the first time that the hormone was used to treat age-related conditions.
Since the 1980s, HGH has become increasingly popular in medical applications, particularly in the treatment of muscle wasting diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, and for increasing muscle mass in bodybuilders. HGH is also used to treat a variety of age-related conditions, including osteoporosis, sarcopenia, and Alzheimer’s disease.
In conclusion, HGH has been used in medical applications since the 1940s, primarily to treat growth hormone deficiency in children. Since then, it has been used to treat a variety of age-related conditions, including muscle wasting diseases, and to promote weight loss, increase muscle mass, and improve skin health.
