Donald Seldin
Donald Seldin | |
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Born | October 24, 1920 Dallas, Texas |
Alma mater |
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Scientific career | |
Fields | internal medicine, nephrology |
Institutions |
Donald Wayne Seldin (October 24, 1920 – April 25, 2018) was an American
Seldin has been referred to as the "intellectual father of UT Southwestern Medical Center",[3][4] and transformed a school housed in a dilapidated barracks into a world renowned medical center. He is noted for his contributions to medical ethics and research in kidney function.
Early life and education
Seldin was born in
Career
Seldin served as a captain in the
After his military service, he worked as a professor at Yale University until 1951.[7]
In 1951, Seldin was recruited to the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, where he worked for 67 years.[4]
When Seldin joined UT Southwestern, it was the newest medical center in the country, and was housed in a dilapidated army barracks.[4] When he arrived, Seldin described it as "shacks and trash", with holes in the floor and broken windows.[6] Within 6 months, the physician who recruited him left, leaving him as the only full-time faculty member of the medical center, and earning him the position of chair by default.[3][6] The school was placed on probation by the accrediting agency.[5]
He served as chair of the department of medicine from 1952 to 1988.[4]
He was credited with greatly increasing the stature of the institution and recruiting top faculty.
In the 1970s, Seldin served as a Commissioner on the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects, which published the Belmont Report, which dictates standards ethical behavior of researchers involving humans.[10]
During the course of his career, Seldin was the president of seven major professional societies: the Central Society for Clinical Research, the Southern Society of Clinical Investigation, the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the American Society of Nephrology, the Association of Professors of Medicine, the Association of American Physicians, and the International Society of Nephrology.[2] He was a founder of the American Society of Nephrology.[4] In 1974, he was elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[11]
Personal life and death
In 1943, he married Muriel Goldberg. After her death in 1994, he married Ellen Lee Taylor, a physician. He has three children from his first marriage. Seldin died of lymphoma in 2018.[2]
Research
Seldin has been recognized for his research in the field of nephrology. A 1990 book on the history of the National Kidney Foundation states that "Nephrology in the United States is what it is today because one day, many years ago, Donald W. Seldin decided to make it his major area of interest."[9]
He and Robert Tarail first described how glucose behaves as a solute causing water to exit cells due to the change in concentration gradient in uncontrolled diabetes.[1] He is known as an author of one of the fundamental textbooks in Nephrology, Seldin and Giebisch's The Kidney. In collaboration with others, he has published research on a variety of topics in the field of nephrology, including the factors affecting acid-base homeostasis, the role of the kidney in determining osmolarity and volume of blood, and the basic functions of renal tubules.[5]
Awards and honors
UT Southwestern's Seldin Plaza is named in his honor, and a 7-foot statue of him is displayed there. UTSW has named several professorships for him: the Donald W. Seldin Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine, the Donald W. Seldin Professorship in Clinical Investigation, and the Sinor-Pritchard Professorship in Medical Education Honoring Donald W. Seldin, M.D.[4]
UTSW's department holds an annual Donald W. Seldin Research Symposium.[12]
The National Kidney Foundation has awarded the Donald W. Seldin Award annually since 1994.[9] The American Society for Clinical Investigation awards the Donald Seldin–Holly Smith Award for Pioneering Research.[13]
In 1985, Seldin received the
Seldin is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine.[15]
References
- ^ ]
- ^ a b c d e f Roberts, Sam (1 May 2018). "Dr. Donald Seldin, Who Put a Medical School on the Map, Dies at 97". The New York Times.
- ^ a b c Nesbitt, Hal. "About ASN – In Memoriam". American Society of Nephrology.
- ^ a b c d e f "Dr. Donald W. Seldin, 'intellectual father' of UT Southwestern, dies at 97". 25 April 2018.
- ^ PMID 16278739.
- ^ a b c d e f "The Father of Dallas Medicine". D Magazine. 17 September 2013.
- ^ "Noted nephrologist Donald W. Seldin, MD, dies". www.healio.com.
- PMID 23024979.
- ^ a b c "National Kidney Foundation Statement on Donald W. Seldin, MD – Distinguished Nephrology Teacher and Researcher". The National Kidney Foundation. 27 April 2018.
- ^ "Donald Seldin". HHS.gov. 23 September 2014.
- ^ "Beutler elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences". Southwestern Medical Foundation. 24 April 2013. Archived from the original on 8 April 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
- ^ "Donald W. Seldin, M.D., Research Symposium".
- ^ "The American Society for Clinical Investigation". www.the-asci.org.
- ^ George M. Kober Medal and Lectureship
- ^ "Donald Seldin, MD: A Giant of Medical Education". www.texmed.org.