Cohn, Edwin Joseph

Edwin Joseph Cohn, (born Dec. 17, 1892, New York City—died Oct. 1, 1953, Boston), American biochemist who helped develop the methods of blood fractionation (the separation of plasma proteins into fractions). During World War II he headed a team of chemists, physicians, and medical scientists who made possible the large-scale production of human plasma fractions for treatment of the wounded.

Cohn received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1917 and began what was to be his lifelong study of proteins with Thomas B. Osborne at the Connecticut Agricultural Experimental Station. From 1922 to 1949 Cohn was a member of the department of physical chemistry at Harvard Medical School, serving as department head from 1935 to 1949.

In about 1930 Cohn began to study the components of protein molecules—amino acids and peptides. He and other investigators correlated the structures of the molecules with their physical properties, determining basic principles that became the foundation for the further study of proteins.

During World War II, with the support of the U.S. Office of Scientific Research and Development, Cohn and his colleagues devised methods to produce vitally needed human plasma fractions—serum albumin, gamma globulin, fibrinogen, and fibrin—for use by the military. Cohn himself oversaw the Navy’s serum albumin program, supervising the training of technologists and establishing and monitoring processing standards. The methods pioneered by Cohn and his associates were adopted by industry, and the products were distributed for treatment of the armed forces and later for use in civilian medicine.