Dr. Julius Axelrod interviewed by Richard Thomas.

Dr. Julius Axelrod, a biochemist and pharmacologist, graduated from City College, New York, in 1933. He talks about his life and work to Richard Thomas. After City College, he worked as an assistant biochemist for a salary of $25 per month. He joined the City of New York Public Health Services in 1935 and supervised the testing of foods to check the vitamin contents. Later, while working at National Heart Institute he discovered how certain compounds affected the functions of adrenalin and blood pressure. He talked about his research on enzymes, and his discovery of a major class of enzymes ca lled P450. He did his Ph.D in 1955 and joined the Institute of Mental Health. He discusses in great detail his work on neurotransmitters and the pineal gland.