Discovery of the Vitamins explicitly accuses McCollum of scientific misconduct, a theme Semba explores again in his 2012 book The Vitamin A Story. He believes that McCollum transferred from the University of Wisconsin to Johns Hopkins University under suspicion of possible academic dishonesty. Semba cites an extraordinary 1918 letter written by Edwin B. Hart, chair of the University of Wisconsin department of agricultural chemistry, to the journal Science. Hart states in this letter, which was published under the title "Professional Courtesy", that a paper co-authored by McCollum and Nina Simmonds, "A Study of the Dietary Essential, Water-SolubleB, in Relation to its Solubility and Stability Towards Reagents", is actually the work of Harry Steenbock, who is mentioned only in a footnote and is thus the victim of a "gross injustice". Further, Hart says that all the records of rat feeding at Wisconsin disappeared during the change of staff. Semba accuses McCollum not only of stealing the Wisconsin research notebooks, but also of sabotage, by releasing all the rats from their cages in the rat colony when he left. Semba disputes McCollum and Davis's claim to the discovery of vitaminA, which was based on their observation that the unidentified substance was "fat-soluble", for three reasons: Carl Socin had suggested that this unknown substance was fat-soluble in 1891. Wilhelm Stepp had shown that there was a growth factor and that it was fat-soluble in 1911. Fat-soluble extracts of butter and egg yolk contain three vitamins: vitamins A, D, and E (all of which were so far unknown). Books Notes Bibliography Further reading Nutritional Biochemistry and the Discovery of Vitamins: the Work of Elmer Verner McCollum – Journal of Biological Chemistry External links , including photo in 2004, at Maryland Historical Trust 1879 births 1967 deaths American biochemists American food writers American nutritionists American vegetarianism activists Diet food advocates Dietitians Foreign Members of the Royal Society Howard N. Potts Medal recipients Johns Hopkins University faculty Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences People from Bourbon County, Kansas Scientists from Baltimore University of Kansas alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Vitamin researchers Yale University alumni