Todd of Trumpington, Alexander Robertus Todd, Baron

▪ 1998

      Scottish organic chemist (b. Oct. 2, 1907, Glasgow, Scot.—d. Jan. 10, 1997, Cambridge, Eng.), studied the chemistry of a variety of chemicals involved in life processes and was awarded the 1957 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his discovery of the structure and synthesis of the nucleotides that are subunits of nucleic acids—the hereditary material of cells. His work provided the foundation for further studies into the physical structure and biological function of nucleic acids, particularly the discovery of the double-helical structure of DNA by James Watson, Francis Crick, and Maurice Wilkins. Todd received doctorates from the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University of Frankfurt, Ger. (1931), and the University of Oxford (1933). He held posts at the University of Edinburgh, where he was one of the first chemists to study the structure of vitamin B₁ (thiamine). Although his method for synthesizing the vitamin was not the first, it proved the best suited to industrial application and continued to be used in manufacturing. From 1938 to 1944 he continued his research at the University of Manchester, Eng., studying the chemistry of a variety of compounds, including vitamin E, substances found in marijuana and hashish, and nucleosides and nucleotides. Todd temporarily interrupted his research during World War II to develop and produce gases to be used in chemical warfare. He accepted the chair in organic chemistry at the University of Cambridge, where he spent the greater part of his career (1944-71) and carried out his most important work. During this time Todd synthesized the nucleoside adenosine as well as adenosine diphosphate and triphosphate (ADP and ATP), nucleotides that are not subunits of nucleic acids but are responsible for energy production and energy storage in plant and animal cells. He also established the structure of the coenzyme flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and was involved in working out the structure of vitamin B₁₂. Todd was knighted in 1954, created a life peer in 1962, and made a member of the Royal Order of Merit in 1977. His autobiography, A Time to Remember: The Autobiography of a Chemist, was published in 1983.

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