Carl Peter Von Dietrich, Brazilian biochemist (São Paulo 23 November 1936 – São Paulo 01 February 2005)

Authored about 250 original works and held about 5,000 citations

ACHIEVEMENTS

Developed new methodologies for the separation and analysis of glycosaminoglycans

Unraveled new metabolic pathways involving glycosaminoglycans and proteoglycans

Identified and determined the characteristics of glycosaminoglycans

Proposed biological and pharmacological roles for glycosaminoglycans

Isolated and characterized more than 20 enzymes responsible for glycosaminoglycans degradation

Proposed the basic structure of heparin in With M.E. Silva & Y.M. Michelacci. Sequential degradation of heparin in Flavobacterium heparinum. Purification and properties of five enzymes involved in heparin degradation. J. Biol. Chem. 248: 6408-6846, 1973.  

With H.B. Nader first to show that the biological role of heparin differs from pharmacological activity

With H.B. Nader first in the world to discover and prepare low molecular weight heparin (1974)

Distinguished clearly heparin from heparin sulfate showing that they play different biological and pharmacological roles 

Proposed a new structure for heparin and heparitin sulfates 

Characterized the mechanism of hemorrhagic action of heparin and its prevention in surgeries (found that ATP can dislodge heparin from lesion)

With H.B. Nader, H.V. Garcia Jr. & E. Buffolo proposed employing ATP as antihemorrhagic agent (1994)

A model for cell-cell recognition and control of cell growth mediated by sulfated glycosaminoglycans. Braz. J. Med. Biol. Research 17:5-15, 1984

With J.R.M. Martins & H.B. Nader proposed the diagnosis of cancer via analysis of urinary glycosaminoglycans (1993)

With H.B. Nader & L. Toma proposed differential diagnosis of mucopolysaccharidosis (1996)

Discovered a new mucopolysaccharidosis 

Developed/ obtained new heparin-like and other antithrombotic drugs

First to detect the presence of glycosaminoglycans in invertebrate animals  

Isolated and characterized enzymes from invertebrates

Isolated heparin-like compounds from marine invertebrates

With G.F. Medeiros & R.A.B. Castro showed that heparan sulfates and heparins perform the same functions in vertebrates and invertebrates (1999) and the widespread occurrence of heparin-like compounds in invertebrates (2000)

Showed the distribution and structural characteristics of sulfated polysaccharides in algae are specific and tissue specific 

SYNDROMES

With P.A.S. Mourão, S.A.P. Toledo & H.B. Nader. Excretion of chondroitin sulfate C with low sulfate content by patients with generalized platyspondily (brachyolmia). Biochem. Med. 2:415-23, 1973

With S.A.P. Toledo, P.A.S. Mourão, C.M.F. Cassaro, C.A. Alves, L.M. Assis & E. Mattar. Recessively inherited, late onset, spondylar dysplasia and peripheral corneal opacity with anomalies in the urinary mucopolysaccharides. A possible error of chondroitin sulfate synthesis. Amer. J. Med. Genetics 2:385-95, 1978 

METHODS

With W.O. Cruz, J.R. Magalhães & L. De Meis developed isolated rabbit ear method for hemostasis in vivo (1962)

With W.O. Cruz developed topical scarification in rat tail for studying hemostasis in vivo (1967)

With L.B. Jaques, R.E. Baillieux & L.W. Kawanagh. A microelectrophoresis method for heparin. Canad.J. Physiol. Pharmacol. 46:351-60, 1968

With S.M.C. Dietrich. Simple micromethod for the identification of acid mucopolysaccharides of mammalian origin. Anal. Biochem. 46:209-15, 1972

With P. Bianchini, H.B. Nader, H.K. Takahashi, B. Osima & A.H. Straus. Fractionation and identification of heparin and other acidic mucopolysaccharides by a new discontinuous electrophoretic method. J. Chromatography 196:455-62, 1980

With H.K. Takahashi & H.B. Nader. A method for the rapid quantitation and preparation of antithrombin III – high affinity heparin fractions. Anal. Biochem. 116:456-61, 1981

With J.R.M. Martins, C.C. Passerotti, R.M.B. Maciel, L.O. Sampaio & H.B. Nader. Practical determination of hyaluronan by a new non-competitive fluorescence-based assay on serum of normal and cirrhotic patients. Anal. Biochem. 319:65-72, 2003

Continuous sephadex gel electrophoresis fractionation of proteins and mucopolysaccharides. Anal. Biochem. 51:345-53, 1973

INVENTION

With L.O. Sampaio, H.B. Nader & J.R.M. Martins a biochemical method for detection and tracking  of neoplasias (1994)

HONOURS

Dietrich’s hyaluronidase, an enzyme from spider Loxosceles intermedia venom