Soviet Medical Encyclopedia

Vladimir Gulevich

Biochemistry, History of Medicine, Biographies

Also known as: Vladimir Sergeevich Gulevich

Historical document, translated for reference. It reflects medical knowledge of the 1920s–30s and is not medical advice.

Summary

Biography of Vladimir Gulevich (born 1867), a prominent Soviet biological chemist known for his pioneering research on the extractive substances of brain, muscle, and other tissues. He discovered several new compounds, including carnosine, carnitine, and methylguanidine, and was a full member of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

Encyclopedia article (1928–1936)

GULEVICH, Vladimir Sergeevich (born 1867), a prominent biological chemist known for his work investigating extractive substances of the brain, muscle, and other tissues. He graduated from the Medical Faculty of Moscow University in 1890.

He worked on analytical chemistry under A. P. Sabaneev,

and on organic and biological chemistry under

A. D. Bulyginsky and

at Kharkov University, and in 1901 to the same department at Moscow University, where he also lectured on organic chemistry at the Medical Faculty. From 1908 to 1924, he held the chair of biological chemistry at the Higher Women's Courses (now the 2nd Moscow State University). Since 1910 he has been a professor of organic chemistry at the Commercial Institute (now the Plekhanov Institute of National Economy) and president of the Association of Scientific Research Institutes at the Physics and Mathematics Faculty of the 1st Moscow State University, while also being a member of many societies. Gulevich has been a full member of the USSR Academy of Sciences in the biology division since 1928, and also a member of the Leopoldine German Academy of Natural Sciences (also since 1928).

Gulevich's main works are devoted to the chemistry of the brain (monograph "On Choline and Neurine", Moscow, 1896), and the composition of muscle and tissue extracts in general. Gulevich established the presence of new substances—carnosine, carnitine, and methylguanidine—in meat extract.

He was the first to ascertain the presence of a beta-amino acid in the organism (carnosine turned out to be beta-alanyl-histidine). The total number of Gulevich's printed works, published mainly in Zeitschrift für physiol. Chemie, is about 60.

About 80 works have come out of the laboratories he directed, many of which are of a monographic nature. Gulevich's book "Urine Analysis" (Moscow, 1925) has gone through a number of repeated editions, as has "A Short Course in Biological Chemistry" compiled by I. A. Makeev from Gulevich's lectures.

Sixteen of Gulevich's students hold chairs in various universities of the RSFSR and abroad.

Cite this page

“Vladimir Gulevich.” Soviet Medical Encyclopedia. English translation of Bolshaya Meditsinskaya Entsiklopediya, 1st ed. (Moscow, 1928–1936), ed. N. A. Semashko. https://sovietmedicalencyclopedia.com/article/gulevich/