John P. Merrill
Encyclopedia
John Putnam Merrill was an American
physician and medical researcher. He led the team which performed the world's first successful kidney transplant. He generally credited as the "father of nephrology" or "the founder of nephrology," which is the scientific study of the kidney and its diseases.
in 1938, he attended the Harvard Medical School
. He graduated in 1942; and he was an intern at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital.
During World War II, he served for four years in the Air Force. Two years were spent on Kwajalein Island in the Pacific with "Operation Crossroads
."
. His work as a medical researcher began in 1947. As a resident in medicine, he was assigned to head the team which developed an artificial kidney (the Brigham-Kolff dialyzers) for use in the treatment of acute and chronic renal failure.
In 1950, Merrill began teaching at Harvard Medical School
.
In 1954, Merrill headed the multidisciplinary team that performed the first successful transplant of a kidney between identical twin brothers.
Merrill was made a full professor at Harvard Medical School in 1970. His legacy is found in his students and in those doctors he mentored.
Merrill's career was cut short when he died on April 14, 1984, in a boating accident while vacationing in the Bahamas.
/WorldCat
encompasses roughly 20+ works in 30+ publications in 3 languages and 400+ library holdings .
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician and medical researcher. He led the team which performed the world's first successful kidney transplant. He generally credited as the "father of nephrology" or "the founder of nephrology," which is the scientific study of the kidney and its diseases.
Early life
Merrill was born in 1917 in Hartford, Connecticut. After graduating from Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1938, he attended the Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School is the graduate medical school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts....
. He graduated in 1942; and he was an intern at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital.
During World War II, he served for four years in the Air Force. Two years were spent on Kwajalein Island in the Pacific with "Operation Crossroads
Operation Crossroads
Operation Crossroads was a series of nuclear weapon tests conducted by the United States at Bikini Atoll in mid-1946. It was the first test of a nuclear weapon after the Trinity nuclear test in July 1945...
."
Career
Merrill's entire career was spent in Boston at Peter Brent Brigham Hospital, now known as Brigham and Women's HospitalBrigham and Women's Hospital
Brigham and Women's Hospital is the largest hospital of the Longwood Medical and Academic Area in Boston, Massachusetts. It is directly adjacent to Harvard Medical School of which it is the second largest teaching affiliate with 793 beds...
. His work as a medical researcher began in 1947. As a resident in medicine, he was assigned to head the team which developed an artificial kidney (the Brigham-Kolff dialyzers) for use in the treatment of acute and chronic renal failure.
In 1950, Merrill began teaching at Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School is the graduate medical school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts....
.
In 1954, Merrill headed the multidisciplinary team that performed the first successful transplant of a kidney between identical twin brothers.
Merrill was made a full professor at Harvard Medical School in 1970. His legacy is found in his students and in those doctors he mentored.
Chronology
| 1947–1950 | residency, Brigham Hospital |
| 1950–1956 | investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Howard Hughes Medical Institute Howard Hughes Medical Institute is a United States non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded by the American businessman Howard Hughes in 1953. It is one of the largest private funding organizations for biological and medical research in the United... at the Brigham Hospital |
| 1952 | Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital The Hôpital Necker – Enfants Malades is a French teaching hospital, located in Paris, France. It is an hospital of the Assistance publique - Hôpitaux de Paris group, and is affiliated to the University of Paris Descartes... , Paris |
| 1954 | kidney transplant |
| 1950–1984 | faculty, Harvard Medical School |
Merrill's career was cut short when he died on April 14, 1984, in a boating accident while vacationing in the Bahamas.
Selected works
In a statistical overview derived from writings by and about John Merrill, OCLCOCLC
OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc. is "a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world’s information and reducing information costs"...
/WorldCat
WorldCat
WorldCat is a union catalog which itemizes the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories which participate in the Online Computer Library Center global cooperative...
encompasses roughly 20+ works in 30+ publications in 3 languages and 400+ library holdings .
- 1980 – The role of the kidney in human hypertension.
- 1980 – Factors Influencing Renal Vasculature During Anesthesia, Trauma, and Oliguric Renal Failure States in Man
- 1977 – Electrolyte Imbalance
- 1974 – Present Status of Kidney Transplantation
- 1973 – Topics in Nephrology
- 1973 – Squirrel Island, Maine: the First Hundred Years
- 1971 – Uremia; Progress in Pathophysiology and Treatment
- 1971 – Artificial Organs and Cardiopulmonary Support Systems
- 1969 – Treatment of acute renal failure
- 1967 – Il trattamento dell'insufficienza renale
- 1963 – Reversible Renal Failure
- 1959 – Die Behandlung der Niereninsuffizienz therapeutische Grundlagen der Behandlung akuter und chronischer Urämie unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des Elektrolythaushaltes
- 1959 – Die Behandlung der Niereninsuffienz (The Treatment of Renal Failure)
- 1955 – The Treatment of Renal Failure; Therapeutic Principles in the Management of Acute and Chronic Uremia
Honors
- Gairdner Foundation International AwardGairdner Foundation International AwardThe Gairdner Foundation International Award is given annually at a special dinner to three to six people for outstanding discoveries or contributions to medical science. Receipt of the Gairdner is traditionally considered a precursor to winning the Nobel Prize in Medicine; as of 2007, 69 Nobel...
, 1969 - American Society for Clinical InvestigationAmerican Society for Clinical InvestigationThe 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:...
, president, 1963