Vulimiri Ramalingaswami

V. Ramalingaswami
Born 8 August 1921
Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, India
Died May 28, 2001(2001-05-28) (aged 79)
Citizenship India
Nationality Indian
Fields Pathology
Institutions All India Institute of Medical Sciences,
Indian Council of Medical Research,
Indian National Science Academy
Alma mater Andhra Medical College

Vulimiri Ramalingaswami (August 8, 1921 – May 28, 2001)[1][2] was an Indian medical scientist. His pioneering research on nutrition got him elected to the National Academy of Sciences, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal Society of London.[3]

He was also the director of All India Institute of Medical Sciences and later on director general of Indian Council of Medical Research and President of the Indian National Science Academy. He was regarded a teacher of international repute in the areas of nutritional deficiency. He has been honored with Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award.[4] by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research in 1967 and Padma Shri in 1969, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan by Government of India,[5] KK Birla National Award, and Basanti Devi Amirchand Prize (ICMR) in 1966. Leon Bernard Foundation Award[6] was presented to him by Sir Harold Walter, president of the 1976 World Health Assembly.

Early life

He was born in a Telugu speaking family in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, South India to V. Gumpaswami and V. Sundaramma. His father was a government servant. He received his medical education from Andhra Medical College, Visakhapatnam and then went on a scholarship to Oxford.

He became the Director of the institute[7] and served the premier institute for 10 years 1969-1979). He became the Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research, New Delhi. In remembrance of his great service, the Indian Government has decided to name the Indian Council of Medical Research building after him (Ramalingaswami Bhavan). He was also President of the Indian National Science Academy. He was Special Advisor to World Health Organization and President of National Institute of Immunology.

He has served as Chair of the International Task Force on Health Research for Development in Geneva (1990–93). He was Secretary-General of the International Conference on Nutrition, in Rome in December 1992, which was held under the auspices of the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. He was appointed to the Board of Governors of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada in 1999.

His contributions to pathophysiology of protein energy malnutrition are well known. His classical experiments on correction of Iodine deficiency by supplementation of common salt with potassium iodate laid foundation for the National Iodine Deficiency Control Programme. He has significant contributions in the discovery of new syndrome of Non-cirrhotic Portal Fibrosis (NCPF) and Indian Childhood Cirrhosis.[6]

Fellowships

Selected publications

  1. Ramalingaswami, V.; Menon, P. S.; Venkatachalam, P. S. (1948). "Infantile pellagra; report on five cases". The Indian physician. 7 (9): 229–237. PMID 18099153. 
  2. Ramalingaswami, V.; Sinclair, H. M. (1953). "The relation of deficiencies of vitamin a and of essential fatty acids to follicular hyperkeratosis in the rat". The British journal of dermatology. 65 (1): 1–22. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2133.1953.tb13159.x. PMID 13018993. 
  3. Ramalingaswami, V., Sriramachari, S., and Patwardhan, V. N., Ind. J. Med. Sci., 8, 433 (1954).
  4. Ramalingaswami, V.; Leach, E. H.; Sriramachari, S. (1955). "Ocular structure in vitamin a deficiency in the monkey". Quarterly journal of experimental physiology and cognate medical sciences. 40 (4): 337–347. doi:10.1113/expphysiol.1955.sp001134. PMID 13280814. 
  5. Ramalingaswami, V.; Subramanian, T. A.; Deo, M. G. (1961). "The aetiology of Himalayan endemic goitre". Lancet. 1 (7181): 791–794. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(61)90118-0. PMID 13739307. 
  6. Ramalingaswami, V. (1964). "Perspectives in Protein Malnutrition". Nature. 201: 546–551. doi:10.1038/201546a0. PMID 14160638. 
  7. Ramalingaswami, V. (1969). "Interface of protein nutrition and medicine in the tropics". Lancet. 2 (7623): 733–736. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(69)90440-1. PMID 4186178. 
  8. Ramalingaswami, V.; Nayak, N. C. (1970). "Liver disease in India". Progress in liver diseases. 3: 222–235. PMID 4910369. 
  9. Ramalingaswami, V. (1973). "Endemic goiter in Southeast Asia. New clothes on an old body". Annals of Internal Medicine. 78 (2): 277–283. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-78-2-277. PMID 4265088. 
  10. Ramalingaswami, V. (1977). "Knowledge and action in the control of vitamin a deficiency". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 300: 210–220. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.1977.tb19319.x. PMID 279269. 
  11. Ramalingaswami, V.; Purcell, R. (1988). "Waterborne Non-A, Non-B Hepatitis". The Lancet. 331 (8585): 571–573. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(88)91362-1. 
  12. V. Ramalingaswami, Prevention of Micronutrient Deficiencies: Tools for Policymakers and Public Health Workers, The National Academies Press (1998).
  13. V. Ramalingaswami, The Public health imperative of permanent elimination of iodine deficiency, 2000.

References

  1. ↑ Menon, M. G. K.; Tandon, P. N. (2008). "Vulimiri Ramalingaswami. 8 August 1921 -- 28 May 2001". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 54: 297–317. doi:10.1098/rsbm.2007.0033.
  2. ↑ Mittra, I. (2002). "Vulimiri Ramalingaswami". BMJ. 324 (7331): 242f–. doi:10.1136/bmj.324.7331.242f.
  3. ↑ "Lists of Royal Society Fellows 1660-2007". London: The Royal Society. Archived from the original on March 24, 2010. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  4. ↑ http://www.education.nic.in/cd50years/12/8I/6G/8I6G0801.html
  5. ↑ "Padma Awards". Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 15, 2014. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  6. 1 2 http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/77/12/7513.pdf
  7. ↑ http://www.aiims.edu/aiims/aboutaiims/aboutaiims-dir-aiims.html
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