[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”0px||||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”||0px||false|false” global_module=”222″ saved_tabs=”all” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][lwp_divi_breadcrumbs home_text=”Alumni in history” font_icon=”5||divi||400″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” module_font=”||||||||” custom_margin=”-20px||||false|false” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/lwp_divi_breadcrumbs][et_pb_post_title meta=”off” featured_image=”off” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” title_font=”|700|||||||” title_font_size=”45px” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_post_title][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
Born near Glasgow, Black received a scholarship to study medicine at St Andrews, graduating in 1946 with his MBChB. He developed an interest in physiology and pharmacology while working at the University of Glasgow\u2019s veterinary school. To realise his ideas for a new drug, Black left academia for the pharmaceutical industry.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/strong>In 1962, he invented propanolol, a beta blocker that blocks adrenaline, reducing the stress response on the heart. Propanolol was the first commercially-successful beta blocker to treat coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, and heart failure.<\/p>\n Black applied the same drug design method to the treatment of stomach ulcers. He invented cimetidine, the first of a new class of drugs, H2 blockers, suppressing stomach acid production. It was the first non-surgical treatment for stomach ulcers.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1988 for his \u2018rational drug design\u2019 approach, also known as reverse pharmacology.<\/p>\n In his Nobel lecture, Black emphasised \u2018the intimate coupling of clinical experience and pharmacological modelling\u2019. The propranolol and cimetidine projects \u2018both started from well-recognised clinical problems at a time when they could be illuminated by specific hypothetical modelling at the laboratory level\u2019.<\/p>\n In 1992, he became Chancellor of the University of Dundee. His presence shaped the university\u2019s commitment to interdisciplinary life sciences and drug discovery. A portrait of Black hangs in the Booth Lecture Theatre.<\/p>\n James Black profoundly impacted medicine and pharmacology, developing two of the most widely used drugs today. His approach won him the Nobel Prize in 1988.<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/medicine.st-andrews.ac.uk\/alumniinhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/82\/2025\/10\/20251015-JamesBlack.jpg” title_text=”20251014-MargaretFarlie” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”||on||||||” text_font_size=”12px” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Courtesy of the Nobel Foundation. Credit: Lars \u00c5str\u00f6m.<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cimetidine<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Nobel Prize<\/strong><\/h3>\n