Umetaro Suzuki

Who was Umetaro Suzuki?

Umetaro Suzuki was a Japanese scientist, born in Shizuoka Prefecture. He was one of the students of famed German Chemist, Emil Fischer. In 1910 he was researching the effects of rice bran in curing patients of beriberi when he discovered an active fraction, which he patented as "aberic acid". In 1935, this compound was refined and correctly described as thiamine. His research was among the earliest of modern vitamin research. He became a professor of agricultural chemistry at the University of Tokyo.