On his archetypal time astatine Central High School, Richard Jay Wurtman listened patiently arsenic a teacher explained the past of the storied Philadelphia magnet school.
On his 2nd day, his longtime person Harman Spolan recalled, the teacher launched into different code connected the schoolhouse and its illustrious graduates. At that, a 14-year-old Wurtman raised his hand. “When tin we commencement to work?” helium asked.
“That was Dick,” Spolan recalled, laughing. “He conscionable wanted to get down to it and get it done.”
That enactment ethic, friends and household said, was 1 of Dr. Wurtman’s defining characteristics, and it served him done a storied vocation successful aesculapian research. He went connected to postgraduate archetypal successful his people astatine Central, attended the University of Pennsylvania, and studied medicine astatine Harvard Medical School. For much than 4 decades, helium taught and conducted groundbreaking probe successful neuroscience astatine the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Dr. Wurtzman, 86, formerly of Philadelphia, died Tuesday, Dec. 13, from complications of pancreatic crab astatine his location successful Boston.
Dr. Wurtman grew up successful Logan, a Philadelphia vicinity surrounding North Broad Street, and, though helium spent overmuch of his big beingness successful Massachusetts, ne'er forgot his Philadelphia roots. As a child, helium was an avid soft subordinate — though helium preferred to play by receptor alternatively of work euphony — and, successful precocious school, spent Friday afternoons successful the discount seats astatine the Academy of Music, listening to the Philadelphia Orchestra.
He graduated from Harvard Medical School successful 1960 and trained astatine Massachusetts General Hospital earlier a stint astatine the National Institutes of Health, MIT officials said successful an obituary posted connected the school’s website.
He began enactment astatine MIT successful 1967, launching a neurochemistry and neuopharmacology section arsenic portion of the school’s Department of Nutrition and Food Science. He besides worked astatine the school’s Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and directed NIH’s Clinical Research Center astatine MIT, the schoolhouse said.
Among his astir pioneering accomplishments was probe that led to the find that the hormone melatonin regulates sleep, the schoolhouse wrote.
“It was his astir cherished discovery,” said his wife, Judith Wurtman, the erstwhile manager of MIT’s Program successful Women’s Health. She and her hubby often worked together, and co-authored respective papers.
The Wurtmans’ probe focused successful portion connected however neurotransmitters similar serotonin impact temper and nutrient cravings; they recovered radical who craved carbohydrates whitethorn beryllium experiencing a lowered dose of serotonin, Judith Wurtman said.
Dr. Wurtman was besides progressive successful the improvement of the weight-loss cause dexfenfluramine, sold arsenic Redux. The cause was aboriginal pulled from the marketplace aft patients who took it successful operation with an older weight-loss drug, phentermine, reported harm to their bosom valves.
Two years aft Redux was pulled, Dr. Wurtman conducted probe himself connected the alleged “fen-phen” cause combination, stressing that helium had nary plans to instrumentality Redux to the market. Instead, helium told the New York Times, “if thing that I had a portion successful inventing arsenic a idiosyncratic turned retired possibly to beryllium unsafe to people, past I’d beryllium obligated to walk a small clip trying to fig retired what was going on.”
Later successful life, Dr. Wurtman researched Alzheimer’s disease, and helped make a liquid dietary supplement intended to bounds the progression of the disease. The yogurt-like drink, called Souvenaid, is made by Nutricia Advanced Medical Nutrition, a subsidiary of the French institution Danone. It’s sold commercially successful Europe and the United Kingdom but is not presently disposable successful the U.S.
The Wurtmans raised 2 children, Rachel and David. His woman said helium was devoted to some them and his 3 grandchildren: “The speech was ever directed toward them. It was always, ‘What are you doing? Tell maine astir your work, your school, your boyfriends,’” she said.
He was arsenic protective of his students and colleagues, she said, making definite to recognition students’ enactment successful his ain research, and championing women scientists astatine a clip erstwhile they weren’t often invited successful labs, Judith Wurtman said.
In his spare time, helium continued to cultivate a emotion for music, supporting the Boston Symphony Orchestra arsenic a subordinate of its advisory committee and serving arsenic a trustee for Miami Beach’s New World Orchestra.
Through his agelong career, Dr. Wurtman ne'er forgot his roots, his woman said. “He went to Penn and Harvard and interned astatine Mass General — a precise prestigious spot — but his astir beloved clip was astatine Central. His closest friends were from Central. He would speech astir it incessantly,” she said. In 1995, helium was elected to the school’s hallway of fame.
In summation to his woman and children, Dr. Wurtman is survived by 3 grandchildren, Dvora Toren, Yael Toren, and Jacob Vider.
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