Bernardo A. Houssay

1887-1971

Bernardo Houssay was born on April 10, 1887 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Descendant from a prosperous French family, he started elementary school attending third grade but fifteen days later, for being very superior to other students, he was promoted to fourth grade; and one month later to fifth grade. He finished elementary school when he was nine years old and at the age of thirteen he had received his high school diploma.
 

He developed his vocation studying in the Pharmacy School of the University of Buenos Aires and graduating at the age of 17. He continued his studies in Medicine specializing in Physiology and graduated in 1911 at the age of 23 with an academic recognition for his doctoral thesis in the research on the hypophysis gland.
 

He continued a long and close relation with research and education, aiming at the service of public interest. In 1913, he was designated Chief of Physiology of the Alvear Hospital, later directed the Experimental Laboratory in Physiology and Pathology and was designated Professor in Physiology in the National School of Medicine of the University of Buenos Aires.
 

In 1919 he was appointed professor of Physiology of the Faculty of Medicine and from that moment he resigned to every professional activity and dedicated with complete dedication to his real vocation: the experimental research and teaching. It was at the time when, on his initiative, the Institute of Physiology of the Faculty of Medicine of Buenos Aires was created, and he was selected as Director. Since then, he spent long days at the Institute making experiments, directing, guiding the disciples and teaching classes. Rapidly, the Institute turned into a center of world excellence in the area of the scientific research.
 

Houssay's works contributed to the knowledge of the causes of a disease known from as "diabetes". It was then known that the origin of the diabetes was the difficulty of the body to metabolize or to process the carbon hydrates, and that difficulty was provoking an excess of glucose (sugar) in the blood. In 1889, he discovered that the cause was originated in the pancreas (a gland); but in 1921 the insulin was identified as a hormone liberated by the pancreas that prevents the excess of sugar in the blood. When the pancreas works incorrectly, insufficient insulin is produced and the diabetes appears.

Mentor and coordinator of the Institute of Physiology of the School of Medicine, he managed to bring the activities at the same internationally recognized level of excellence, performing this job until 1943 when he was fired for political reasons during general Perón's presidency. Starting in 1944 he developed an intense labor of investigation in the Institute of Biology and Experimental Medicine that he funded with private support because he was forced to abandon the official position.
 

Houssay devoted his time to investigate the function of the hypophysis in the diabetes. He discovered that diabetic dogs were improving when the hypophysis was extirpated and that the diabetes was worsening when a hormone formed by hypophysis was injected. With these studies, Houssay's team  managed to understand the role of the hypophysis in the metabolic processes of the carbohydrates and in the diabetes, which was used as base for other investigators work on the role of different endocrine glands.

The Institute of Physiology started to be noticed among the most important of the world and Houssay received numerous foreign experts who came to work under his direction. Every year, more than eighty investigators were working at the Institute.

He obtained the Nobel prize of Medicine and Physiology, in 1947, was awarded with the first prize of sciences of Argentina; obtained the Charles Wickle prize granted by the University of Toronto (Canada); the Banting medal of the American Diabetes Association of North America; an award from the American Pharmaceutical Manufactures' of New York and the Baly Medal prize from England.

His professional career was finally fulfilled with international recognitions awarding him a special prize of the Society of Endocrinology in London in 1960, his incorporation as member of the National Academy of Argentine Medicine, the Academy of Letters, the Academy of Political Sciences and more than 40 honorary memberships in the principal academies, scientific societies and universities of the world.

The real award to his achievements extended furthermore to the point of having brilliant disciples graduate from his Institute. One of them, Luis Federico Leloir received the Chemistry Nobel Prize in 1970

In 1972, the OEA (Organization of American States) instituted the Bernardo Houssay's award to reward the most important investigators of the American continent.
 

Bernardo Houssay died in Buenos Aires on the 21 of September of 1971 leaving an important legacy and dozens of disciples who would achieve international success.