Anselme Payen

Anselme Payen (6 January 1795 – 12 May 1878) was a French chemist. 

Payen discovered the first enzyme, diastase, in 1833.A. Payen and J.-F. Persoz (1833) "Mémoire sur la diastase, les principaux produits de ses réactions et leurs applications aux arts industriels" (Memoir on diastase, the principal products of its reactions, and their applications to the industrial arts), Annales de chimie et de physique, 2nd series, vol. 53, pages 73–92. He is also known for isolating and naming the carbohydrate cellulose.A. Payen (1838) "Mémoire sur la composition du tissu propre des plantes et du ligneux" (Memoir on the composition of the tissue of plants and of woody [material]), Comptes rendus, vol. 7, pages 1052–1056.  Payen added appendices to this paper on 24 December 1838 (see: Comptes rendus, vol. 8, page 169 (1839)) and on 4 February 1839 (see:  Comptes rendus, vol. 9, page 149 (1839)).  A committee of the French Academy of Sciences reviewed Payen's findings in :  Jean-Baptiste Dumas (1839) "Rapport sur un mémoire de M. Payen, relatif à la composition de la matière ligneuse" (Report on a memoir of Mr. Payen, regarding the composition of woody matter), Comptes rendus, vol. 8, pages 51–53.  In this report, the word "cellulose" is coined and the author points out the similarity between the empirical formula of cellulose and that of dextrine (starch).  The above articles are reprinted in:   Brongniart and Guillemin, eds., Annales des sciences naturelles... , 2nd series, vol. 11 (Paris, France:  Crochard et Cie., 1839), pages 21–31.

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Category:1795 births
Category:1878 deaths
Category:French chemists
Category:Scientists from Paris