The Vitamin Theory

Frederick Gowland Hopkins (1861-1947)

Vitamins may be defined as Organic Compounds occurring in small quantities in different natural foods and necessary for growth and maintenance of good health in human beings and in experimental animals. Vitamins are essential food factors, which are required for the proper utilization of the proximate principles of food like carbohydrates, lipids and proteins.

Discovery of vitamins started from observation of deficiency manifestation, e.g. Scurvy, Rickets, Beriberi, etc. "The Vitamin Theory" was suggested by Hopkins in 1912 (Nobel Prize, 1929). The term "vitamine" was coined from the words 'vital' + 'amine', since the earlier identified ones had amino groups. Later work showed that most of them did not contain amino groups, so the last letter 'e' was dropped in modern term 'Vitamin'.

Although vitamins are important nutritionally, their role has been over-emphasized in clinical practices. They are useful to correct deficiencies. But taking higher doses of vitamins will not boost up the health.  

Fredrick G. Hopkins (NP: 1929) [1861-1947]
Suggested "The Vitamin Theory". n 1912 Hopkins published the work for which he is best known, demonstrating in a series of animal feeding experiments that diets consisting of pure proteins, carbohydrates, fats, minerals, and water fail to support animal growth. This led him to suggest the existence in normal diets of tiny quantities of as yet unidentified substances that are essential for animal growth and survival. These hypothetical substances he called “accessory food factors”, later renamed vitamins.[3] It was this work that led his being awarded (together with Christiaan Eijkman) the 1929 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.                                

Richard Kuhn (NP: 1938) [1900-1967]
Isolated Vitamin-A in 1913, identified carotenes.
Kuhn's areas of study included: investigations of theoretical problems of organic chemistry (stereochemistry of aliphatic and aromatic compounds; syntheses of polyenes and cumulenes; constitution and colour; the acidity of hydrocarbons), as well as extensive fields in biochemistry (carotenoids; flavins; vitamins and enzymes). Specifically, he carried out important work on vitamin B2 and the antidermatitis vitamin B6.



Paul Karrer (NP: 1937) [1889-1971]
Karrer's early research concerned complex metal compounds but his most important work has concerned plant pigments, particularly the yellow carotenoids. He elucidated their chemical structure and showed that some of these substances are transformed in the body into vitamin A. His work led to the establishment of the correct constitutional formula for beta-carotene, the chief precursor of vitamin A; the first time that the structure of a vitamin or provitamin had been established.




Otto P. Diels(NP:1950) [1876-1954]
A German chemist who won a Nobel Prize in chemistry with Alder in 1950. He was awarded the prize for diene synthesis work which led to improved methods of analyzing and synthesizing organic compounds. His research resulted in the discovery of carbon suboxide, methods of dehydrating cyclical hydrocarbons using selenium, and determination of the structure of steroids. A student of Fischer's, Diels graduated from the University of Berlin.






Kurt Alder (NP: 1950) [1902-1958]
Alder received several honorary degrees and other awards, most famously the 1950 Nobel Prize in Chemistry which he shared with his teacher Diels for their work on what is now known as the Diels-Alder reaction. The lunar crater Alder is named in his honour. The insecticide aldrin, created through a Diels-Alder reaction, is also named after the scientist.