Background

Albert L. Lehninger was born on February 17, 1917 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States, in the family of Albert O. and Wally Selma (Heymer) Lehninger.

Education

Albert earned his Bachelor of Arts in English from Wesleyan University (1939) and went on to pursue both his Masters of Science (1940) and Ph.D. (1942) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His doctoral research involved the metabolism of acetoacetate and fatty acid oxidation by liver cells.

Career

After earning his doctorate in biochemistry, Lehninger held various faculty positions at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the University of Chicago. In 1952, he went to the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, assuming the title of DeLamar Professor of the Department of Biological Chemistry. He served in this position until 1978, when he was appointed to the role of University Professor of Medical Sciences. He held this title until his death in 1986.

Achievements

• Albert made fundamental contributions to the current understanding of metabolism at a molecular level. In 1948, he discovered, with Eugene P. Kennedy, that mitochondria are the site of oxidative phosphorylation in eukaryotes, which ushered in the modern study of energy transduction.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Principles of Biochemistry by Albert L. Lehninger (1993-12-01) 1993
  • Biochemistry: The Molecular Basis of Cell Structure and Function (Second Edition) 1978
  • Principles of Biochemistry: With an Extended Discussion of Oxygen-Binding Proteins 1993
  • Bioenergetics: The Molecular Basis of Biological Energy Transformations 1971
  • The mitochondrion;: Molecular basis of structure and function 1965

Membership

Member President's Panel on biomedical Research, 1975-1976. Member American Chemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, National Academy of Sciences (councilor 1976-1986), American Society Biological Chemists (president 1972-1973), American Philosophical Society (vice president 1975-1986), American Academy Arts and Sciences, Institute Medicine (councilor 1976-1986), Bio-chemical Society (London), 14 West Hamilton St. Club, Johns Hopkins Club (Baltimore). Green Spring Valley Hunt Club, Gibson Island Yacht Squadron Club, Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Phi Nu Theta.

• Biochemical Society , United Kingdom

• American Association for the Advancement of Science

• councilor

  National Academy of Sciences

  1976

• councilor

  American Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine

  1976

• American Philosophical Society

• president

  American Society of Biological Chemists

  1972 - 1973

• Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina

• Phi Beta Kappa

• Sigma Xi

• Phi Nu Theta

Interests

• Sailing, golf

Connections

On March 12, 1942, Albert married Janet Wilson. They had two children: James L. and Erika L. Whitmore.

Father:

Albert O. Lehninger

Mother:

Wally Selma (Heymer) Lehninger

Spouse:

Janet Wilson

child:

James L.

child:

Erika L. Whitmore