Lars-Erik Tammelin

Who is Lars-Erik Tammelin?

Lars-Erik Tammelin, born 1923, died 1991, was a Swedish chemist, defence researcher and civil servant.

Tammelin, who was an organic chemist, was recruited to the Swedish Defence Research Agency in 1950 for research on nerve gas and nerve gas countermeasures. At this time, FOA had become aware that large quantities of nerve gas, primarily Tabun, had been stockpiled during World War II. The mechanism of action of the nerve gases were found to be linked to their chemical similarity to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine and their ability to block the enzyme cholinesterase. Much of Tammelin's work was therefore focussed on choline esters. In 1958, he defended a Ph.D. thesis based on this work at Stockholm University College. The esters that form the V-Series of nerve agents are sometimes referred to as "Tammelin's esters".

Succinylcholine, one of the compounds synthesized by Tammelin in his search for nerve gas countermeasures was put into use as a muscle relaxant for use during general anaesthesia surgery under the brand name Celocurin.