Archibald Garrod was a physician whose innovative work in clinical medicine and chemistry led him to discover a new class of human disease based on hereditary factors. A pioneer in biochemistry, Garrod stressed the chemical uniqueness of each person. For his work on inborn errors of metabolism, Garrod was elected to the Royal Society and received a knighthood.

Archibald Edward Garrod was born in London on November 25, 1857, the fourth and youngest son of Sir Alfred Baring Garrod and Elisabeth Ann Colchester. Garrod's father, a distinguished professor of medicine at University College in London, was the first physician to note the presence of uric acid in patients suffering from gout. In later years, Garrod would cite his father's discovery as the first quantitative biochemical investigation performed on living humans.

As a child, Garrod demonstrated an early talent for illustration and a lasting interest in color. He studied physical geography...