pharmacologist, physiologist, b. Lexington, Ky. He graduated from the Univ. of Kentucky (B.S., 1898; M.S., 1899) and Johns Hopkins (M.D., 1903). While at the Univ. of Kentucky, he studied under Joseph H. Kastle, who exerted a profound influence on his life and career. In 1899 they jointly published a paper dealing with a fundamental oxidation problem and in 1900 conclusively demonstrated for the first time the reversibility of enzymes. Following graduation from medical school, he was made an assistant in physiological chemistry and pharmacology at johns Hopkins and in 1906 became an associate professor. In 1908 he was appointed professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the Univ. of Wisconsin Medical School and began the most productive years of his scientific research and study. His interests were centered on organic oxidations and, after coming to Wisconsin, he shifted his emphasis from the mechanism to the conditions of oxidation. Among his most important contributions to this study were experiments leading to a new and important theory of dual metabolic processes in the respiratory center. During World War I he was chief of the Division of Pharmacology and Toxicology of the Chemical Warfare Service in Washington. His work in this department stimulated his interest in arsenical organic compounds and he began to attack the problem of treating neurosyphilis. In these studies he made important contributions to knowledge of the therapeutic effect of the compound Tryparsamide, which was then becoming widely used in treating that disease. In his later years he made detailed studies of local anesthetics. He was a member of many scientific organizations and in 1925 was selected as one of the ten leading physiologists and pharmacologists in the world by his fellow scientists. Amer. Men of Sci. (1927); Madison Wis. State Journal, Apr. 20, May 4, 1929; O. Orth, "A. S. Loevenhart . . . at Wis.," MS in State Hist. Soc. Wis. Lib.Learn More
Dictionary of Wisconsin History
Explore more than 1,600 people, places and events in Wisconsin history.
[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]