William Murrell (1853-1912) Clinical Pharmacologist and Toxicologist

William Murrell, licentiate of the Society of Apothecaries and laureate of the Academy of Medicine of Paris, was one of the first to recognize clinical benefits from the administration of nitroglycerin drops in the management of patients afflicted with angina pectoris. Murrell, born in London, the son of a barrister-in-law, was educated at Murray School in Wimbledon and at University College, London.¹ After training at the University College and Brompton hospitals, he served as demonstrator of physiology and Sharpey Physiological Scholar at University College Hospital. He qualified for membership in the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1875, and membership in the Royal College of Physicians in 1877. The MD degree was granted by the University of Brussels in 1879.

Murrell held several hospital appointments but served longest at Westminster, where he rose from registrar in 1877 to full physician two decades later. In the course of his