"Cortison. Geschichte eines Hormons, 1900-1955" by Dr. Lea Haller

In her book, Dr. Lea Haller traces the development of the first isolation of hormones of the adrenal cortex until the occasional discovery of a synthesized drug for chronic diseases such as asthma or rheumatism. She examines the constellations and issues that allowed the development of cortisone. Her study shows that this discovery is the product of interplay between different factors: chemical laboratory research, logistics of substances between slaughterhouses, pharmaceutical companies and universities, contracts between financiers, patent holders and industries as well as the development of biological measurement methods to test the effect of isolated substances.

Lea Haller received the ETH Medal, an award honoring outstanding dissertations. A Branco Weiss fellow since 2012, she now analyses in a long-term perspective how trading companies reacted to technological, structural and political change. Her project aims at understanding the interrelation of a neutral foreign policy and global trading networks.

NZZ article