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| Subject: Edward J. Schantz, Pioneering Researcher of Toxins, Including Botox | |
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Author: Dies at 96 |
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Date Posted: May 06, 2005 11:15:19 EDT Dr. Edward J. Schantz, a biochemist who studied the deadly neurotoxins produced by shellfish and other organisms, first for the toxins' military potential and later for their broader medical benefits, including cosmetic treatments that led to Botox, died on April 28 at an extended-care center in Madison, Wis. He was 96. The cause was congestive heart failure, his family said. Dr. Schantz pursued his research for three decades in a Department of Defense laboratory at Fort Detrick, Md., before joining the University of Wisconsin in 1972. He worked with saxitoxin, a highly lethal toxin found in clams and other shellfish, and the botulinum neurotoxin Type A, which is made by bacteria, often within tainted canned foods. Military authorities during World War II were interested in the use of botulinum as a weapon, and Dr. Schantz helped produce it and evaluate its potential. His research helped conclude that botulinum had only limited battlefield applications. In the 1960's, Dr. Schantz became a supplier of the toxin for scientific purposes. A researcher at the Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute in San Francisco, Dr. Alan B. Scott, tested a sample on monkeys in a bid to find a nonsurgical cure for crossed eyes, by relaxing the eye muscles. Dr. Scott and others successfully injected botulinum Type A in humans for crossed eyes and clenched eyelids, and the Food and Drug Administration approved it for general use in 1989. In an interview yesterday, Dr. Scott cited Dr. Schantz's work in purifying medical botulinum, as well as his "expert knowledge in generously supplying toxin for our animal and human studies." The toxin was later found to have applications in dermatology, by erasing lines and wrinkles on the faces of patients seeking cosmetic surgery. The drug is sold commercially as Botox, which is distributed by Allergan Inc. of Irvine, Calif. In other research, Dr. Schantz looked at clams, mussels and scallops and their production of saxitoxin, which has no known antidote and is considered to be one of the deadliest poisons. He also studied staphylococcal enterotoxins, which are found in contaminated foods. Edward Joseph Schantz was born in Hartford, Wis., and grew up on his family's dairy farm. He received his undergraduate and doctoral degrees in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin and earned a master's at Iowa State University. After early work on the chemistry of milk for the Carnation Milk Company, Dr. Schantz turned to neurotoxins. From 1946 to 1962, he was chief of the chemistry branch at the Fort Detrick laboratory. He was named a senior investigator before retiring in 1971. Dr. Schantz became a professor emeritus in the department of food microbiology and toxicology at Wisconsin in 1979, continuing to experiment with the botulinum neurotoxin. He also lived in Madison. His wife, the former Katharine Lee, died in 1998. Dr. Schantz is survived by three daughters, Elizabeth Burmaster, a regent at the University of Wisconsin; Katharine Fleissner, of Pittsburgh, and Mary Krueger, of Jay, N.Y.; two sons, Edward Jr., of Champaign, Ill., and Robert, of Bend, Ore.; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |