Ivan Horbachevsky
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Biography
Ivan Horbachevsky (Ukrainian: Іван Якович Горбачевський, Ivan Jakovyč Horbačevskyj; May 5, 1854, Zarubińce – May 24, 1942, Prague) also known as Jan Horbaczewski, Johann Horbaczewski or Ivan Horbaczewski, was an eminent Austrian chemist and politician of Ukrainian origin.
From 1872 to 1878, he studied medicine at the University of Vienna, Austria. In 1883, he was appointed extraordinary professor and, in 1884, ordinary professor at the University of Prague by the Emperor, and was the rector of the same university for a time. He is particularly known for his contributions in organic chemistry and biochemistry. He was the first to synthesize glycine. He also noticed that aminoacids were building blocks of proteins. Horbachevsky worked in Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Ukraine. In Imperial Austria, he was appointed minister of public health in the summer of 1918, heading the first health ministry in Europe.