Gertrude B. Elion (1918-1999)

Awarded the Prize “for her discoveries of important principles for drug treatment.”

American pharmacologist. Elion was born on January 23, 1918 in New York City. She graduated from Hunter College in 1937 obtained her Master of Science degree in chemistry at New York University in 1941. She received three honorary doctorate degrees from George Washington University, Brown University the University of Michigan. She was a Scientist Emeritus Consultant of Burroughs Wellcome a Research Professor of Medicine Pharmacology at Duke University. Elion died on February 21, 1999 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.