Max Shaw Dunn Collection

Max Shaw Dunn was born in Iowa on August 22, 1895. He received his BA (1916) and MS (1918) degrees from Simpson College, and went on to receive his PhD in biochemistry from the University of Illinois in 1921. Shortly afterwards he became the first instructor of biochemistry at what would become the University of California at Los Angeles. Dr. Dunn was a pioneer in the study of the physical and chemical properties of amino acids and proteins and became quite proficient at the purification of those compounds at a time when very little was known about them. This proficiency led to requests from research laboratories worldwide, for samples of these amino acids which led to the establishment of a nonprofit organization within the university to address this demand. He was also instrumental in the development of the microbiological method for the analysis of amino acid mixtures. He retired from teaching in 1962. Following his retirement, Dr. Dunn became a vice president of the. ICN Pharmaceutical Corporation, Irvine, Calif., where he served until his death. He died in Los Angeles on August 24, 1976.