Comroe became a professor at the
University of Pennsylvania in 1936. He was chairman of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at the university's Graduate School of Medicine from 1946 to 1957.[3] From 1957 to 1973 Comroe served as the founding director of the
Cardiovascular Research Institute (CVRI) at the
University of California, San Francisco. In 1974 he retired as director and was named the Morris Herzstein Professor of Biology.[1][4]
Julius Hiram Comroe, Jr. was born in
York, Pennsylvania. (Both his father Julius H.Comroe and his older brother Bernard Comroe were medical doctors.)
In 1931 he graduated first in his class from the
University of Pennsylvania.
In 1934, he graduated first in his class from the UPenn Medical School with an M.D. degree.
He became an intern at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, intending to become a surgeon, but had to give up that goal after he lost one of his eyes to an infection.[2]
Career
In 1936 Comroe became an instructor at the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Medicine. He was promoted to Associate in 1940 and Assistant Professor in 1942.[5] Working with
Carl Frederic Schmidt [
de], he carried out generative research work on the mechanisms and control of
breathing, identifying
carotid and aortic chemoreceptors and their part in the regulation of breathing. His work was considered "the definitive work on the aortic chemoreceptors".[2]
When the University of Pennsylvania formed the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology in the Graduate School of Medicine in 1946, Comroe became both professor and chairman of the new department. Under his direction, it focused on the field of respiratory physiology.[2][6]
Between 1946 and 1957, Comroe continued to study breathing. With his colleagues, he developed scientific instrumentation and methods for evaluating human respiratory performance under normal conditions, while exercising, and during illness. Many of the
pulmonary function tests still used are based on this work. Comroe investigated topics including reflex control of breathing, rate and depth of breathing, and the effects of drugs and oxygen. He and
anesthesiologistRobert Dunning Dripps showed that the method of manual artificial respiration used at that time was inefficient, which eventually led to its replacement by
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.[6]
In 1957 Comroe moved to the
University of California, San Francisco to become Director of its new Cardiovascular Research Institute (CVRI) and professor of physiology. From 1957 to 1973 he continued his research into cardiac and pulmonary function. At the same time, he developed a highly respected program for postdoctoral training and teaching in medicine and physiology. As a
medical educator he emphasized the interdisciplinarity of science, the importance of
basic research, and the integration of research into clinical departments. In 1974 he stepped down as director and was named the Morris Herzstein Professor of Biology.[6]
Comroe published both research papers and books, including The Lung (1955, 1962), Physiology of Respiration (1965, 1974), the series Physiology for Physicians, and Exploring the heart (1983). From 1966 to 1970 he edited the journal Circulation Research.[5][6] From 1972–1975 he was the
editor of the peer-reviewed journal Annual Review of Physiology.[7][8]
Comroe served on a number of national-level scientific advisory boards, including
the National Advisory Heart Council, the Board of Scientific Counselors of the
National Heart Institute, and the National Advisory Mental Health Council.[5]
In 1954, Comroe was appointed to the scientific advisory board of the Tobacco Industry Research Committee.[12] He expressed repeated dissatisfaction with its operations and public statements, and resigned in 1960.[13]
Comroe also served on national-level educational committees of the
American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and the American Physiological Society.[5]
Books
Comroe, Julius H., ed. (1950). Methods in Medical Research (2 volumes, 1st ed.). Chicago: Year Book Publishers.[2]
Comroe, Julius H. (1955). The Lung: clinical physiology and pulmonary function tests (1st ed.). Chicago: Year Book Publishers. (1955, 1962)[4]
Comroe, Julius H. Jr. (1965). Physiology of respiration: an introductory text. Chicago: Year Book Medical Publishers.
ISBN9780815118244. (1965, 1974)[4]
Comroe, Julius H. (1983). Exploring the heart: discoveries in heart disease and high blood pressure (1st ed.). New York: Norton.
ISBN9780393017083.[3]
Comroe, Julius H. (1977). Retrospectroscope: insights into medical discovery. Menlo Park, Calif.: Von Gehr Press.
ISBN9780960147014.[2]