CHEMIST

Percy Lavon Julian

1899 - 1975

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Percy Lavon Julian (April 11, 1899 – April 19, 1975) was an American research chemist and a pioneer in the chemical synthesis of medicinal drugs from plants. Julian was the first person to synthesize the natural product physostigmine, and a pioneer in industrial large-scale chemical synthesis of the human hormones progesterone and testosterone from plant sterols such as stigmasterol and sitosterol. His work laid the foundation for the steroid drug industry's production of cortisone, other corticosteroids, and artificial hormones that led to birth control pills. Julian started his own company to synthesize steroid intermediates from wild Mexican yams. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in 16 different languages on Wikipedia. Percy Lavon Julian is the 594th most popular chemist (down from 581st in 2024), the 13,527th most popular biography from United States (down from 11,394th in 2019) and the 121st most popular American Chemist.

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Among CHEMISTS

Among chemists, Percy Lavon Julian ranks 594 out of 602. Before him are Esther M. Conwell, Richard Lerner, Ruth R. Benerito, Donald Howard Menzel, Sam Ruben, and Jacqueline Barton. After him are Omar M. Yaghi, Charles M. Lieber, Harry B. Gray, George M. Whitesides, Bonnie Bassler, and Germar Rudolf.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1899, Percy Lavon Julian ranks 320. Before him are Jimmie Davis, Sleepy John Estes, Carmel Myers, Glenn Strange, Stanley Skewes, and Randall Thompson. After him are Walter Crickmer, Eric Linklater, George K. Arthur, Takashi Kawanishi, Genevieve Tobin, and Allen Tate. Among people deceased in 1975, Percy Lavon Julian ranks 269. Before him are Hans Ziglarski, Marjorie Main, Larry Parks, Ian Hunter, Lionel Trilling, and Robert Strauss. After him are Bob Wills, and Padmaja Naidu.

Others Born in 1899

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Among CHEMISTS In United States

Among chemists born in United States, Percy Lavon Julian ranks 120. Before him are Richard Lerner (1938), Ruth R. Benerito (1916), Donald Howard Menzel (1901), Sam Ruben (1913), and Jacqueline Barton (1952). After him are Charles M. Lieber (1959), Harry B. Gray (1935), George M. Whitesides (1939), Bonnie Bassler (1962), John M. Jumper (null), and Clarice Phelps (null).

American born Chemists

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