The research conducted by Vladimir Prelog into the stereochemistry of organic molecules and reactions earned him the 1975 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. His career spanned several decades of academic inquiry, moving from chemical engineering in Prague to a prominent professorship at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, where he ultimately succeeded Lavoslav Ružička.
Early Development in Chemistry
Born in 1906 in Sarajevo, Prelog moved through several cities during his youth, including Zagreb, Osijek, and Prague. His formal interest in chemistry began at the Osijek gymnasium under the influence of professor Ivan Kuria. By age 15, he published his first communication regarding a titration apparatus in the journal Chemiker-Zeitung. He later enrolled at the Czech Technical University in Prague, where he earned a diploma in chemical engineering in 1928, followed by a Sc.D in 1929 under the instruction of Emil Votoček and Rudolf Lukeš.
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Prelog gained early industry experience working at the plant laboratory of G.J. Dríza in Prague from 1929 until 1935, producing rare chemicals. He transitioned to academia as a lecturer at the University of Zagreb in 1935, holding a position at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry until 1941. During this period, supported by the pharmaceutical factory Kaštel, he synthesized Streptazol and achieved the first synthesis of adamantane, a hydrocarbon identified in Moravian oil fields.
Scientific Contributions at ETH Zurich
In 1941, Prelog moved to Switzerland to join the Organic Chemistry Laboratory at ETH Zurich. His research proved that nitrogen atoms could serve as chiral centers in a molecule by separating the enantiomers of Tröger's base in 1944. He rose through the faculty ranks to become a full professor in 1952 and eventually succeeded Ružička as head of the laboratory in 1957. His later work focused on the structural elucidation of alkaloids and microbial metabolites, including antibiotics such as nonactin, boromycin, and rifamycins.
Global Recognition
Prelog held multiple international memberships, including the Royal Society, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the French Academy of Sciences. Beyond the Nobel Prize, he received the Centenary Prize, the Marcel Benoist Prize, the Paracelsus Prize, the Roger Adams Award in Organic Chemistry, the Davy Medal, and the August Wilhelm von Hofmann Medal. Prelog died in Zurich in 1998 and is buried at Mirogoj Cemetery.
Fast facts
- Born: 1906, Sarajevo
- Died: 1998, Zurich
- Citizenship: Switzerland, Austria–Hungary, Kingdom of Yugoslavia
- Education: Czech Technical University in Prague
- Major Award: Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1975)
- Primary Fields: Biochemistry and organic chemistry
- Burial Site: Mirogoj Cemetery
- Honorary Citizen: Osijek (1994)
Questions readers ask
What was Vladimir Prelog's primary area of scientific research?
He focused on the stereochemistry of organic molecules, the structure of alkaloids, and the properties of microbial metabolites.
Which major academic institution employed Prelog in Switzerland?
He was a long-term faculty member and laboratory head at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich).
Achievements
- Nobel Prize in Chemistry — 1975
- Davy Medal — 1967
- Foreign Member of the Royal Society — 1962
- Held posts at ETH Zurich and Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry
- Educated at Czech Technical University in Prague and III Gymnasium Osijek
- Fields of research: biochemistry and organic chemistry
