Albert Hofmann
Dr. Albert Hofmann (born 11 January 1906) is a prominent Swiss scientist and best known as the "father" of LSD. He was born in Baden, Switzerland, and studied chemistry at the University of Zurich. His main interest was the chemistry of plants and animals, and he later conducted important research regarding the chemical structure of the common animal substance chitin, for which he received his doctorate. Hofmann joined the pharmaceutical-chemical department of Sandoz Laboratories, Basel (now Novartis), studying the medicinal plants squill and ergot as part of a program to purify and synthesize active constituents for use as pharmaceuticals.
His research in lysergic acid, the central shared component of ergot alkaloids, eventually led to the synthesis of LSD-25 in 1938. It was five years later, on repeating synthesis of the almost forgotten substance, that Dr. Hofmann discovered the psychedelic effects of LSD after accidentally ingesting some through his fingertips on April 16 1943. Three days later, on April 19 (later known as Bicycle Day), Hofmann deliberately consumed 250µg of LSD, and experienced far more intense effects (see: LSD for details). This was followed by a series of self-experiments conducted by Hofmann and his colleagues. He first wrote about these experiments on April 22.
He became director of the natural products department at Sandoz and went on studying hallucinogenic substances found in Mexican mushrooms and other plants, leading to the synthesis of psilocybin. In 1962, he and his wife Anita travelled to southern Mexico to search for and analyse other (what he called) "magic plants".
Dr. Pharm. (hc) Dr. Sc.Nat. (hc) Hofmann is Member of the Nobel Prize Committee, Fellow of the World Academy of Sciences, Member of the International Society of Plant Research and the American Society of Pharmacognosy.
He has been author of over 100 scientific articles and has written (or co-authored) a number of books, including LSD, My Problem Child, which is partly an autobiography and describes his famous bicyle ride.
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