Philip Seeman
Canadian pharmacologist (1934–2021)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Philip Seeman, OC FRSC (8 February 1934 – 9 January 2021) was a Canadian schizophrenia researcher and neuropharmacologist, known for his research on dopamine receptors.[1]
Philip Seeman | |
|---|---|
| Born | 8 February 1934 |
| Died | 9 January 2021 (aged 86) |
| Awards | Order of Canada |
Career
Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Seeman was raised in Montreal. He received a Bachelor of Science degree, honours physics & physiology (1955), a Master of Science degree, physiology of transport & secretion (1956), and a Doctor of Medicine (1960) from McGill University. In 1966, he received a Ph.D. in life sciences from Rockefeller University under the supervision of George Emil Palade.[2]
In 1967, Seeman became an assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Toronto. In 1970, he was appointed a professor.
In 1974, having spent years in search of the binding site of antipsychotic medication, he discovered the dopamine D2 receptor, the basis for the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia.[3][4] His discoveries also helped advance research on other diseases involving dopamine, such as Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease.[2]
In 1985, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.[5]
In 2001, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada "for his research on dopamine receptors and their involvement in diseases such as schizophrenia, Parkinson's and Huntington's".[6]
He was married to Dr. Mary V. Seeman.[7]