Born July 21, 1924 in West New York, New Jersey she was the eldest daughter of Sarah (née) Richman and Morris Ressler. Charlotte dedicated her life to the advancement of science and was an expert in medicinal chemistry and pharmacology. Charlotte received her B.A. magna cum laude in chemistry from New York University in 1944 and earned her Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry at Columbia University in 1949. As a Research Associate and then Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Cornell University Medical School, she was instrumental in elucidating the polypeptide sequence of Oxytocin and synthesizing the world’s first artificially created hormone. For these historic efforts, Charlotte was part of the team that received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1955.
Dr. Ressler remained at Cornell as an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association until becoming Division Head of Protein Chemistry at the Institute for Muscle Disease, Inc. New York in 1959. Dr. Ressler was appointed Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Connecticut Health Center in 1974, was awarded tenure in 1977, and named Professor Emeritus in 1992. Dr. Ressler is the recipient of multiple awards in chemistry including the American Institute of Chemists Award, Westinghouse Award, Lillian Lindhardt-Solotoroff Prize in Chemistry, and the New York University Mandel Award in Chemistry. She is a member of Iota Sigma Pi and Phi Beta Kappa.
Dr. Ressler is the author or co-author of 93 scientific publications spanning chemical synthesis, natural product purification, metabolism, pharmacology, and drug allergy. Dr. Ressler has served on various USPHS and international study section review panels in medicinal chemistry, on the AAAAI committee for Adverse Drug Reactions and Biologicals, has been an expert witness and consultant on food toxins, and has also served as a consultant to the FDA and USDA. After retiring at the University of Connecticut, Dr. Ressler joined AllerQuest, LLC in Farmington, CT as Senior Vice-President of Research and Development. Her 25 years of experience working on Penicillin led to the increased safety of rapid skin tests used by thousands of hospitals worldwide. For this work, she received an award and honorary membership from the Ontario Allergy Society.
Charlotte was predeceased by her parents, her brothers, Daniel and William, and sister, Gertrude. Charlotte is survived by her loving sister Mrs. Helene Lanster of Miami, Florida, and numerous nieces, nephews, colleagues, and friends.
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