Scientific Contributions
By bombarding matter with particles in the cyclotron, radioactive isotopes such as carbon-14, were generated. Using carbon-14, the order of events in biochemical reactions could be elucidated, showing the precursors of a particular biochemical product, revealing the network of reactions that constitute life. Kamen is credited with confirming that all of the oxygen released in photosynthesis comes from water, not carbon dioxide. He also studied the role of molybdenum in biological nitrogen fixation, the biochemistry of cytochromes and their in photosynthesis and metabolism, the role of iron in the activity of porphyrin compounds in plants and animals, and calcium exchange in cancerous tumors.
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“Those Dutchmen had hardly any imagination or fantasy, but their good taste and their scientific knowledge of composition were enormous.”
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