Gerty Cori
Cori became the third woman ever and the first American woman to win a Nobel Prize in physiology. They researched the way a cell is able to use glycogen. In 1922 they moved to the United States. They were given the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1947. She and her husband were only the third husband-and-wife team to receive this award. They discovered how glycogen is broken down in muscle tissue into lactic acid. After this, it is absorbed by the body and stored as a source of energy. This process is called the Cori cycle. They also found the important catalyzing compound, the Cori ester. In 2004, Cori and her husband's work was designated an ACS National Historical Chemical Landmark for carbohydrate metabolism.