Person

Törk, Istvan Joseph (1939 - 1992)

Born
14 February 1939
Budapest, Hungary
Died
21 November 1992
Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation
Anatomist and University Administrator

Summary

Istvan Törk was an anatomist and pioneer in the study of brain chemistry whose research, before he came to Australia in 1976, centred on the comparative anatomy of a variety of vertebrates and resulted in the publication of over 30 papers. On being appointed to the University of New South Wales his focus became more centred on neuroanatomy (particularly the distribution of neuropeptides and monoamines in the brainstem), leading to the work for which Törk is best known: on the serotonin raphe nuclei. This had significant implications for the treatment of psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. Törk's research was notable for his extensive collaboration with colleagues. With George Paxinos, Törk published the landmark Atlas of the developing rat brain (1991), a work widely-used for many years. Törk was also respected for the broad range of his teaching skills. He is commemorated by the Istvan Tork prize for University of New South Wales neuroscience students.

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Details

Chronology

1957
Education - Doctor of Medicine, Budapest (Semmelweis) University of Medicine, Hungary
1963 - 1969
Career position - Lecturer in anatomy, Budapest (Semmelweis) University of Medicine, Hungary
1969 - 1976
Career position - Senior Lecturer in anatomy, University of Zambia
1971 - 1976
Career position - Professor of anatomy, University of Zambia
1976 - 1984
Career position - Senior lecturer in anatomy, University of New South Wales
1979
Life event - Became an Australian citizen
1984 - 1991
Career position - Associate Professor in anatomy, University of New South Wales
1988 - ?
Career position - Head, Department of Anatomy, University of New South Wales
1991 - 1992
Career position - Professor of anatomy, University of New South Wales

Related Corporate Bodies

Published resources

Books

  • Paxinos, George; Valentino, Karen L.; Törk, Istvan; and Teccot, Lawrence H., Atlas of the developing rat nervous system (Academic Press, 1991), 304 pp. Details

Book Sections

Journal Articles

Resources

See also

  • Tracey, David J., Paxinos, George and Stone, Jonathan eds, Neurotransmitters in the human brain (New York: Plenum Press, 1995), 243 pp. Details

Rosanne Walker and Helen Cohn

Created: 30 June 1997, Last modified: 14 April 2022

EOAS ID: biogs/P002690b.htm

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