Dam, Henrik (1895–1976) DanishBiochemist Carl
Peter Henrik Dam was born in Copenhagen on Febru-
ary 21, 1895, to druggist Emil Dam and his wife Emilie
(née Peterson), a teacher. He attended and graduated in
chemistry from the Polytechnic Institute, Copenhagen,
in 1920, and the same year was appointed assistant
instructor in chemistry at the School of Agriculture and
Veterinary Medicine, advancing to full instructor in bio-
chemistry at the physiological laboratory of the Univer-
sity of Copenhagen in 1923.
In 1925 Dam became assistant professor at the
Institute of Biochemistry, University of Copenhagen,
and three years later was promoted to associate profes-
sor, where he served until 1941. Upon submitting a the-
sis “Nogle Undersøgelser over Sterinernes Biologiske
Betydning” (Some investigations on the biological sig-
nificance of the sterines) to the University of Copen-
hagen in 1934, he received a Ph.D. in biochemistry.
He discovered vitamin K and its anticoagulant
effects while studying the sterol metabolism of chicks in
Copenhagen and was awarded the Nobel Prize in phys-
iology or medicine in 1943 for this work.
Dam conducted research at Woods Hole Marine
Biological Laboratories during the summer and autumn
of 1941 and at the University of Rochester, N.Y., where
he served as a senior research associate between 1942
and 1945. He was at the Rockefeller Institute for Med-
ical Research in 1945 as an associate member.
Dam was appointed professor of biochemistry at
the Polytechnic Institute, Copenhagen, in 1941, though
the designation of his chair at the Polytechnic Institute
was changed to professor of biochemistry and nutrition
in 1950.
After his return to Denmark in 1946, he concen-
trated his research on vitamin K, vitamin E, fats,
cholesterol, and nutritional studies in relation to gall-
stone formation.
He published over 300 articles in biochemistry and
was a member of numerous scientific organizations.
Dam died on April 17, 1976.
Daniel cell (gravity cell) A special copper/zinc bat-
tery, where a spontaneous chemical reaction between
zinc metal and aqueous copper (II) sulfate is conducted
in which the chemical energy released is in the form of
electrical energy. Invented in 1836 by Englishman John
F. Daniel.
data A collection of facts, concepts, or instructions in
a formalized manner suitable for communication or
processing by human beings or by computer.dative bond SeeCOORDINATION.daughter nuclide Nuclide that is produced in a
nuclear decay of another NUCLIDEand can decay fur-
ther or become stable.debye The unit used to express dipole moments.
Equal to the moment that exists between a unit of posi-
tive charge and a unit of negative charge separated by a
distance of 1 cm; 1 debye = 10–18statcoulomb·cm.Debye, Petrus (Peter) Josephys Wilhelmus
(1884–1966) DutchPhysical chemist Peter Debye
was born on March 24, 1884, at Maastricht, in the
Netherlands. He received elementary and secondary
school education in his home town. Thereafter, he
attended the Aachen Institute of Technology (Technis-
che Hochschule) and gained a degree in electrical tech-
nology in 1905, serving as assistant in technical
mechanics at the Aachen Technological Institute for
two years. In 1906 Debye obtained a similar position
in theoretical physics at Munich University and quali-70 Dam, Henrik
Daniel cell. An electrical cell that has zinc as the negative
electrode