The Oliver Lowry Lecture

The Lowry Lecture is held annually to honor the many contributions of the late Oliver Lowry to the field of biochemistry and metabolic regulation, as well as to Washington University. Dr. Lowry came to Washington University in 1947 and chaired the Department of Pharmacology from 1947 to 1976.   He was dean of the School of Medicine from 1955-1958.   He became an emeritus professor in 1979 but served as acting department chair from 1989-1990. He remained an active member of the department through 1994.

Dr. Lowry was a biochemist whose name was well-known in laboratories throughout the world.   In the 1950s, he described a simple yet sensitive method for measuring the amount of protein in solutions.   For many years, his paper was cited in scientific literature more frequently than any other publication. He pioneered freeze-drying methods to preserve cells in the natural state, invented a microbalance that could measure less than a millionth of a gram, and developed extremely sensitive assays that found widespread applications in biology and medicine.   In 1970, Dr. Lowry's name appeared on Nature magazine's list of the world's 50 most eminent scientists, and in 1988, he was awarded the Medal of the 30 th Anniversary of the Cosmic Era, U.S.S.R., for pioneering work on the long-term effects of weightlessness on muscle.

Past Oliver Lowry Speakers