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Dr. Peter Moloney: A pioneer in Canadian medicine and science

Dr. Peter Joseph Moloney in his study


-by John Gillis

    The name Moloney is well-known in Inverness County ever since Henry Moloney and his family moved to Blackstone to purchase and run a farm with their growing family in 1971.
    Eventually, Henry and Alfreda had a family of 13 children and four more that died young.
    Many of the older children were born in Manitoulin Island, Ontario, and the younger ones were born in Inverness County.
    In addition to the farm, Henry (who was also an educator and teacher) was employed for a time at Mabou Consolidated School.
    For a time in the 1970s and 80s, the Moloney Farm also had a cheese plant that made a product that was quite popular in the area.
    Henry’s son John and his wife Linda now operate and live on the farm in Blackstone.
    Henry and Alfreda’s late son Francis was a lawyer in Port Hood.
    Other family members joined religious orders or work in various fields across Canada, many in western Canada.
    Probably a lesser known fact to many in Inverness County is the prominent role played by Henry’s father, Dr. Peter Moloney, in science and medicine in Canada and around the world.
    For this story, The Oran is indebted to Mary Veronica Moloney, who wrote a book on her grandfather (Behind Insulin: The Life and Legacy of Doctor Peter Joseph Moloney, 2016) as well as excerpts from scientific journals and other material she has included on her website honouring Dr. Moloney (including Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada/Series and science.ca).  The website is a wonderful heartfelt tribute to the man and his accomplishments.
    We also spoke to John Moloney of Blackstone, who shared some fond memories of his grandfather.
Dr. Peter Moloney
    Dr. Peter Moloney was born on June 29th, 1891, in Penetanguishene, Ontario.    
    His father was Thomas Henry Moloney, an Irish immigrant and his mother was Elizabeth Byrnes.
    Dr. Peter Moloney was, it was said by many, a humble man, dedicated to family and work, also known as a raconteur with a gentle wry sense of humour, a fact also recalled by his grandson John.
    “His formal education began when he was five in Powassan’s two-room two-teacher elementary school of that period,” it is noted on his website that he showed promise early academically.
    Peter Moloney earned a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Toronto in 1912.  He earned his Master of Arts in 1915, and his PhD in Chemistry in 1923.
    He met his future wife Angelina Chapman at Berkeley in Los Angeles, California when he was a PhD student and she was also a student.
    Together they had five children:  Mary, Henry, Oliver, John, and Peter.
Role in Insulin development and other scientific work
     Again, from sources noted above, “although Banting and Best discovered insulin, they did not have the know-how to purify it. This was done haphazardly by one man, who could not reproduce his first success, which greatly annoyed Dr. John Gerald Fitzgerald (mentor to Dr. Moloney and first dean of Medicine at University of Toronto). It was Dr. Peter Joseph Moloney who successfully purified insulin from benzoic acid, a technique he brought to the Toronto lab from his earlier work. He was the one who made the first pure, safe preparation for the world market, thus securing fame for Banting and Best. He was also the one, told by Fitzgerald, to ‘drop everything and start producing diphtheria toxoid’, a very dangerous procedure, who gave North America and eventually the world, diphtheria toxoid, first discovered by Gaston Ramon in France. He also invented the quick acting pH electrode. He won the Gairdner Award, and many more awards, including the Order of the British Empire for producing a gas gangrene antiserum during the Second World War.”
Awards
    Although a humble and hard-working family man, Dr. Peter Moloney and his work was rightly recognized by his peers.  He won the Order of the British Empire, 1946; The Banting Medal, 1964; Charles Mickle Fellowship, 1964; The Gairdner Award for his long and distinguished career, 1967; The Charles Best Medal, 1971 and The Hoechst Prize in 1971.
Crystallin Penicillin
    “The discoveries related to penicillin provided a new area for biochemical investigation and Dr. Moloney worked in this field with outstanding success. In company with his associate, Dr. A. L. Tosoni, Dr. Moloney prepared crystallin penicillin by a new method in large quantities such that Connaught Laboratories was one of the first laboratories to offer crystalline penicillin for export. The process developed by Moloney and Tosoni for the crystallization of potassium penicillin continues to be used throughout the world,” his peers noted during a presentation of an honourary doctorate degree.
    Dr. Moloney was also the assistant director of Connaught Laboratories, University of Toronto Campus and Professor of Biochemistry in the School of Hygiene, University of Toronto.  In 1977, the Connaught Laboratories Limited named “The Moloney Building” in his honour.
    Dr. Moloney was also a member of the American Chemical Society, the British Biochemical Society, the Canadian Physiological Society, the Canadian Society of Immunologists, the Canadian Federation of Biological Societies, the Royal Society of Canada, and the Michaelmas Conference.
Publishing
    Moloney’s first two papers were published in the Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada; and it is noted by his peers that 16 more followed in this journal, and his life-time publications numbered 84.
Honourary Doctorate
    In awarding Dr. Moloney an Honourary Doctorate the presenter at the time noted: “It is said, Madam Chancellor, that well-endowed persons prove themselves early in life. Peter Moloney has also shown that the creative flame does not have to wither with the passing of the years. He kept it burning by his curiosity, his humour, and his compassion. Madam Chancellor, I present to you, for the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, Peter Joseph Moloney, in inquisitve scientist, a witty teacher, a humble, and sincere man.”
Science and Faith
    Another aspect of Dr. Peter Moloney’s life that is sometimes unusual for a prominent scientist is that his work was marked by faith – “faith in his fellow scientists whom he defended consistently against accusations of in-fighting, faith in Canada, faith in his Catholic church,” Mary Veronica Moloney noted.
Grandson John Moloney remembers
    John Moloney of Blackstone still fondly recalls many visits from his grandfather to the family farm in Blackstone.
    “Of course, I remember him as a grandfather.  He visited almost yearly while he could still travel.  He was a great guy and he had a wry sense of humour.  We knew him as our grandfather and we weren’t so much aware of his accomplishments in medicine and science at the time.  I read the biography last winter and I really enjoyed the story.  I would’ve been very impressed with the story even if he wasn’t my grandfather.  I remember him as being a very spry and athletic man (he was also on the university football team) and I recall that even in his 80s he could jump in the air and click his heels three times before hitting the ground.  Another funny story I recall is that when he felt he could no longer drive safely, he voluntarily turned his driver’s license over to the police.  So, he was always planning ahead!  My grandfather lived to be 98 years old and fortunately, he remained very active with a sharp mind until the end,” John Moloney concluded.
   

 

 

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