OBITUARY
Theodore Lionel Sourkes Obituary A. Claudio Cuello1 and Moussa Youdim2* 1
McGill, Montreal, Canada 2 Technion, Haifa, Israel
Theodore Lionel Sourkes, a most notable neurochemist, died in Montreal on 17 January 2015. From very humble beginnings, he rose to become one of the most influential neuroscientists of his time. Soon after obtaining a BSc at McGill University, at the start of the Second World War, he wished to join the Canadian Armed forces but was refused on the grounds of poor eyesight. He worked instead for the war industry in Toronto, where he married Shena Rosenblatt, the love of his life. At the end of the war, encouraged by Shena’s parents, he enrolled back at the McGill MacDonald College, where he obtained an MSc in Nutritional Sciences. Following that, in 1948, he joined the Cornell University laboratory of James Summer, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, where he obtained a PhD in Biochemistry. This was a most influential and formative period for Sourkes, which established a path to a brilliant career to follow. From 1948 to 1950, he taught Pharmacology at Georgetown University Medical School, and soon after he joined the Merck Institute for Therapeutic Research in Rahway, New Jersey (1950-1953). His profound knowledge of catecholamine biochemistry allowed Sourkes to develop alpha-methyldopa as one of the first effective anti-hypertensive treatments (Aldomet). Aldomet remained for many years the principal pharmacological treatment for essential hypertension. In the 1950s, The Allan Memorial Institute of Psychiatry at McGill was searching for biochemists with an interest in the investigation of mental disorders. Theodore Sourkes took this position in 1953, where he led a pioneering team in Neuropsychopharmacology, focusing on the role of catecholamines in central nervous system disease. In the late 1950s, reports appeared indicating that dopamine, the decarboxylation product of DOPA, was
-----------------------------------------------------------*E-mail: [email protected]
Relevant conflicts of interest/financial disclosures: Nothing to report. Full financial disclosures and author roles may be found in the online version of this article. Received: 5 February 2015; Accepted: 6 February 2015 Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI: 10.1002/mds.26212
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Movement Disorders, Vol. 30, No. 4, 2015
heavily concentrated in the basal ganglia. Sourkes’ team investigated which diseases were associated with catecholamine dysfunction in these structures, and Parkinson’s disease stood out prominently. Dr. Sourkes reasoned that in diseases affecting the basal ganglia, a loss of dopamine might result, and that perhaps such a loss might even be detectable in extracerebral compartments of the body. Consequently, he organized a urinary screening program at McGill, involving the measurement of catecholamines in the urine of patients with various diseases. The results of his studies demonstrated deficient excretion of dopamine (but not the other catecholamines) in Parkinson’s disease patients; this was not the case with other basal ganglia diseases such as hepatolenticular degeneration or Huntington’s disease. At this crossroads, Sourkes considered the therapeutic possibility of replacing the loss of basal ganglia dopamine in Parkinson’s by administering its precursor, levodopa (L-dopa). A similar approach was entertained by Hornykiewicz in Vienna. Thus, Sourkes and
O B I T U A R Y
Barbeau and Hornykiewicz and Birkamayer applied, independently for the first time and simultaneously, L-dopa to Parkinson’s patients in 1961. The results were encouraging, and the final therapeutic doses were determined afterward in 1967 by Cotzias and colleagues. This fundamental concept, “the L-dopa replacement therapy,” constituted the first effective treatment of a neurological disease and changed the perception that neurological symptoms are irreversible. This therapy has improved the quality of life for thousands if not millions of patients worldwide, and it is, to this day, a valid therapeutic concept. Sourkes’ research on L-dopa and Parkinson’s disease led to a series of important papers regarding the mode of Ldopa action in the central nervous system and the introduction of the first Parkinson’s animal model with Dr Poirer. They demonstrated biochemically, in lesioned monkeys, that the substantia nigra was indeed the origin of basal ganglia dopamine, at a time when neuroanatomists were unable to demonstrate the existence of a nigro-
striatal pathway. This had to wait for the Swedish development of induced-fluorescence histochemical techniques. “Ted,” as he was known by friends and colleagues, trained a large number of basic scientists and scientifically minded clinicians who have developed most successful careers around the world. He was a most humble and self-effacing individual, and the significance of his work has not been duly acknowledged. He has served as Professor to the McGill Departments of Psychiatry, Biochemistry, and Pharmacology and Therapeutics. He is remembered fondly by friends, peers, and trainees for his wisdom, acute sense of humor, and intellectual generosity. His scientific contributions have been of utmost significance and have been recognized by many Prizes and Awards, including Officer of the Order of Canada and the Wilder Penfield Prix du Quebec. McGill University has created a “Theodore L. Sourkes Lecture Award in Neuropharmacology” as a tribute to his scientific legacy. He is survived by his wife Shena Rosenblatt and daughters Barbara and Myra Sourkes.
Movement Disorders, Vol. 30, No. 4, 2015
447
Theodore Lionel Sourkes Obituary A. Claudio Cuello1 and Moussa Youdim2* 1
McGill, Montreal, Canada 2 Technion, Haifa, Israel
Theodore Lionel Sourkes, a most notable neurochemist, died in Montreal on 17 January 2015. From very humble beginnings, he rose to become one of the most influential neuroscientists of his time. Soon after obtaining a BSc at McGill University, at the start of the Second World War, he wished to join the Canadian Armed forces but was refused on the grounds of poor eyesight. He worked instead for the war industry in Toronto, where he married Shena Rosenblatt, the love of his life. At the end of the war, encouraged by Shena’s parents, he enrolled back at the McGill MacDonald College, where he obtained an MSc in Nutritional Sciences. Following that, in 1948, he joined the Cornell University laboratory of James Summer, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, where he obtained a PhD in Biochemistry. This was a most influential and formative period for Sourkes, which established a path to a brilliant career to follow. From 1948 to 1950, he taught Pharmacology at Georgetown University Medical School, and soon after he joined the Merck Institute for Therapeutic Research in Rahway, New Jersey (1950-1953). His profound knowledge of catecholamine biochemistry allowed Sourkes to develop alpha-methyldopa as one of the first effective anti-hypertensive treatments (Aldomet). Aldomet remained for many years the principal pharmacological treatment for essential hypertension. In the 1950s, The Allan Memorial Institute of Psychiatry at McGill was searching for biochemists with an interest in the investigation of mental disorders. Theodore Sourkes took this position in 1953, where he led a pioneering team in Neuropsychopharmacology, focusing on the role of catecholamines in central nervous system disease. In the late 1950s, reports appeared indicating that dopamine, the decarboxylation product of DOPA, was
-----------------------------------------------------------*E-mail: [email protected]
Relevant conflicts of interest/financial disclosures: Nothing to report. Full financial disclosures and author roles may be found in the online version of this article. Received: 5 February 2015; Accepted: 6 February 2015 Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI: 10.1002/mds.26212
446
Movement Disorders, Vol. 30, No. 4, 2015
heavily concentrated in the basal ganglia. Sourkes’ team investigated which diseases were associated with catecholamine dysfunction in these structures, and Parkinson’s disease stood out prominently. Dr. Sourkes reasoned that in diseases affecting the basal ganglia, a loss of dopamine might result, and that perhaps such a loss might even be detectable in extracerebral compartments of the body. Consequently, he organized a urinary screening program at McGill, involving the measurement of catecholamines in the urine of patients with various diseases. The results of his studies demonstrated deficient excretion of dopamine (but not the other catecholamines) in Parkinson’s disease patients; this was not the case with other basal ganglia diseases such as hepatolenticular degeneration or Huntington’s disease. At this crossroads, Sourkes considered the therapeutic possibility of replacing the loss of basal ganglia dopamine in Parkinson’s by administering its precursor, levodopa (L-dopa). A similar approach was entertained by Hornykiewicz in Vienna. Thus, Sourkes and
O B I T U A R Y
Barbeau and Hornykiewicz and Birkamayer applied, independently for the first time and simultaneously, L-dopa to Parkinson’s patients in 1961. The results were encouraging, and the final therapeutic doses were determined afterward in 1967 by Cotzias and colleagues. This fundamental concept, “the L-dopa replacement therapy,” constituted the first effective treatment of a neurological disease and changed the perception that neurological symptoms are irreversible. This therapy has improved the quality of life for thousands if not millions of patients worldwide, and it is, to this day, a valid therapeutic concept. Sourkes’ research on L-dopa and Parkinson’s disease led to a series of important papers regarding the mode of Ldopa action in the central nervous system and the introduction of the first Parkinson’s animal model with Dr Poirer. They demonstrated biochemically, in lesioned monkeys, that the substantia nigra was indeed the origin of basal ganglia dopamine, at a time when neuroanatomists were unable to demonstrate the existence of a nigro-
striatal pathway. This had to wait for the Swedish development of induced-fluorescence histochemical techniques. “Ted,” as he was known by friends and colleagues, trained a large number of basic scientists and scientifically minded clinicians who have developed most successful careers around the world. He was a most humble and self-effacing individual, and the significance of his work has not been duly acknowledged. He has served as Professor to the McGill Departments of Psychiatry, Biochemistry, and Pharmacology and Therapeutics. He is remembered fondly by friends, peers, and trainees for his wisdom, acute sense of humor, and intellectual generosity. His scientific contributions have been of utmost significance and have been recognized by many Prizes and Awards, including Officer of the Order of Canada and the Wilder Penfield Prix du Quebec. McGill University has created a “Theodore L. Sourkes Lecture Award in Neuropharmacology” as a tribute to his scientific legacy. He is survived by his wife Shena Rosenblatt and daughters Barbara and Myra Sourkes.
Movement Disorders, Vol. 30, No. 4, 2015
447
