Association of American Physicians
Encyclopedia
The Association of American Physicians (AAP) is a medical society founded in 1885 by the Canadian physician Sir William Osler and six other distinguished physicians of his era, for "the advancement of scientific and practical medicine." Election to the AAP is an honor extended to individuals with outstanding credentials in biomedical science and/or translational biomedical research, and is limited to 60 persons per year. The AAP includes about 1000 active members and 550 emeritus and honorary members. The great majority are US citizens. However, other countries are also represented. The AAP holds a joint meeting each year with the American Society for Clinical Investigation
(ASCI), another honorary medical society with closely related goals. AAP was the parent organization that gave birth to ASCI in 1908, with the latter organization intended as a more inclusive body, accessible to younger members of the medical research community. Membership in ASCI is also an honor conferred by election, and often precedes membership in AAP.
The overarching goals of the AAP include the promotion of professional and social interaction among biomedical scientists, the dissemination of important information related to biomedical science and teaching, the recognition of outstanding scientists through membership, and the establishment of role models to kindle new generations of high achievers in medicine and medical science.
The range of topics studied by members of the AAP is as broad as medicine itself, ranging from fundamental biological questions to translational research (development and testing of new treatments) to public policy issues. The Transactions of the Association of American Physicians, published until 1995, recorded the presentations of members at the annual meeting. In that year, the Transactions was replaced by a bimonthly publication (Proceedings of the Association of American Physicians). The Proceedings is no longer published.
The AAP honors selected scientists with the George M. Kober medal, for outstanding contributions to medicine or medical science.
by Banting
and Macleod
in 1922, and discovery, by Minot
and Murphy in 1926, that pernicious anemia
could be treated by feeding patients extracts of raw liver.
Members of the AAP have included Nobel laureates, and members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
and the Institute of Medicine
. Living members of the AAP who have also been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
include Barry Marshall
, Stanley Prusiner, Michael S. Brown, Joseph L. Goldstein
, E. Donnall Thomas
, and others.
American Society for Clinical Investigation
The American Society for Clinical Investigation, or ASCI, established in 1908, is one of the nation's oldest and most respected medical honor societies.-Organization and Purpose:...
(ASCI), another honorary medical society with closely related goals. AAP was the parent organization that gave birth to ASCI in 1908, with the latter organization intended as a more inclusive body, accessible to younger members of the medical research community. Membership in ASCI is also an honor conferred by election, and often precedes membership in AAP.
The overarching goals of the AAP include the promotion of professional and social interaction among biomedical scientists, the dissemination of important information related to biomedical science and teaching, the recognition of outstanding scientists through membership, and the establishment of role models to kindle new generations of high achievers in medicine and medical science.
The range of topics studied by members of the AAP is as broad as medicine itself, ranging from fundamental biological questions to translational research (development and testing of new treatments) to public policy issues. The Transactions of the Association of American Physicians, published until 1995, recorded the presentations of members at the annual meeting. In that year, the Transactions was replaced by a bimonthly publication (Proceedings of the Association of American Physicians). The Proceedings is no longer published.
The AAP honors selected scientists with the George M. Kober medal, for outstanding contributions to medicine or medical science.
History
The AAP held its first meeting in 1886. Some of the most important advances in biomedical science were first reported at annual AAP meetings. These included the discovery of insulinInsulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
by Banting
Frederick Banting
Sir Frederick Grant Banting, KBE, MC, FRS, FRSC was a Canadian medical scientist, doctor and Nobel laureate noted as one of the main discoverers of insulin....
and Macleod
John James Richard Macleod
John James Rickard Macleod FRS was a Scottish physician and physiologist. He was noted as one of the co-discoverers of insulin and awarded the Nobel Prize for this discovery.-Biography:...
in 1922, and discovery, by Minot
George Minot
George Richards Minot was an American medical researcher who shared the 1934 Nobel Prize with George Hoyt Whipple and William P. Murphy for their pioneering work on pernicious anemia.-Life:...
and Murphy in 1926, that pernicious anemia
Pernicious anemia
Pernicious anemia is one of many types of the larger family of megaloblastic anemias...
could be treated by feeding patients extracts of raw liver.
Members of the AAP have included Nobel laureates, and members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
and the Institute of Medicine
Institute of Medicine
The Institute of Medicine is a not-for-profit, non-governmental American organization founded in 1970, under the congressional charter of the National Academy of Sciences...
. Living members of the AAP who have also been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
include Barry Marshall
Barry Marshall
Barry James Marshall, AC, FRS, FAA is an Australian physician, Nobel Prize laureate in Physiology or Medicine, and Professor of Clinical Microbiology at the University of Western Australia. Marshall is well-known for proving that the bacterium Helicobacter pylori Barry James Marshall, AC, FRS, FAA...
, Stanley Prusiner, Michael S. Brown, Joseph L. Goldstein
Joseph L. Goldstein
Joseph L. Goldstein from Kingstree, South Carolina is a Nobel Prize winning biochemist and geneticist, and a pioneer in the study of cholesterol metabolism.-Biography:...
, E. Donnall Thomas
E. Donnall Thomas
Dr. Edward Donnall Thomas is an American physician, professor emeritus at the University of Washington, and director emeritus of the clinical research division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. In 1990 he shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Joseph E. Murray for the...
, and others.