Johann Friedrich Meckel

Johann Friedrich Meckel the Younger ( born October 17, 1781 Hall, † October 31, 1833 ) was a German anatomist and is considered one of the founders of Teratology.

Life

Meckel attended the Cathedral School in Magdeburg ( Graduate 1798) and studied at the University of Halle medicine, particularly pharmacology at Kurt Sprengel ( 1766-1833 ) and Johann Christian Reil in anatomy and his father Philipp Friedrich Theodor Meckel ( 1756-1803 ) and languages ​​(later he translated from English, Italian, French and Latin ). His grandfather was Johann Friedrich Meckel the Elder ( 1724-1774 ).

1801/ 02 he spent two semesters at the University of Göttingen, where he studied anatomy and anthropology at Johann Friedrich Blumenbach and childbirth art especially. In 1802 he was at Halle University with a dissertation on deviant designed heart ( De cordis conditionibus abnormibus ) received his doctorate of medicine. A study trip led him to Würzburg and Vienna, the news of his father's death forced him to return in 1803 (according to the last will of his father he skeletonized whose body and placed it in the family's own collection on ). Under the rules of the estate, he traveled to Paris to sign in to the anatomist Georges Cuvier educate (whose Leçons d'Anatomie he translated into German in 1809 ).

Meckel was appointed in 1805 at the instigation of Reil associate professor at the University of Halle, but he returned only to reopen under French rule -1808. In the same year he was appointed professor of anatomy, pathological anatomy, surgery and obstetrics. From 1810, he taught mainly anatomy. Was honored Meckel, who was consulted, among others, the Russian Czar house, with the Red Eagle Order 3rd class, the Iron Cross, the Russian Vladimir - Order 4th class and the inclusion in the Leopoldina in 1828.

1967 bones were exhumed and incorporated into his 1836 sold by the widow for 25,000 dollars to the University of Meckel's anatomical collection.

Scientific achievements

Meckel published mainly on abnormalities and is considered along with Étienne Geoffroy Saint- Hilaire as the founder of teratology, the scientific study of the malformations ( inter alia description of a malformation of the human embryo - Meckel syndrome - and the most common abnormality of the gastrointestinal tract, the Meckel 's diverticulum ). Through these researches and studies on the development of embryos ( inter alia he clarified the epigenesis of the chicken in the egg and the development of the human mandible from a cartilage, the Meckel's cartilage) refuted Meckel commonly accepted that in the egg already the body " nested " and would be only during the ripening " unfolding ".

In his system of comparative anatomy (1821 ) reflected on the fact of the emergence of new species. For this purpose, four mechanisms are listed by him: a) the frequent occurrence of spontaneous generation; b ) an inner drive change; c ) the direct influence of the environment; and d) the hybridization. What is interesting about his reflections are an assumption of a natural process in the speciation and also some of Jean -Baptiste de Lamarck related positions.

In addition, he expanded his father's collection ( Meckel's collection ) and published authoritative summary writings for his area of ​​expertise ( and Others Handbook of pathological anatomy, four volumes, 1812-1820; contributions to comparative anatomy, two volumes, 1808 and 1812; system of comparative anatomy, six volumes, 1821-1831 ). From 1815 he was Reil's Archives of Physiology out with.

Works

  • Meckel, J. F.: System of Comparative Anatomy. Volume 1-6 Renger, 1821
  • Meckel, JF: contributions in writing, Comparative Anatomy, Volume 1, Part 1, 1808
  • Handbook of pathological anatomy. Volume 2, Part 1 Carl Heinrich Reclam, 1812
  • Meckel, JF: Manual of pathological anatomy. Volume 2, Part 1 Carl Heinrich Reclam, 1812
  • Meckel, JF: Essays from the human and comparative anatomy and physiology. Hemmerde and Schwetschke, 1806

Literature and sources

  • Sabine Schwarz: The private collection of the anatomical anatomist Meckel family, in particular their preparation technical profile. Martin -Luther- University Halle- Wittenberg, Halle, 2000. (Dissertation)
  • Michael Viebig and Rüdiger Schultka: The anatomist Meckel, On the Genealogy of Halle family physicians (Journal of Homeland research, Supplement 5), nd;
  • Helmke Schier Horn, Johann Friedrich Meckel the Younger as the founder of scientific teratology ( manuscript ), in: Leopoldina archive MM 1324 Meckel
  • Nicholas Rüdinger: Meckel Hemsbach, Johann Friedrich. In: General German Biography (ADB ). Volume 21, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1885, pp. 159-162.
  • Eberhard J. Wormer: Meckel v. Hemsbach, Johann Friedrich the Younger. In: New German Biography ( NDB ). Volume 16, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1990, ISBN 3-428-00197-4, pp. 585 f ( digitized ).
Johann Friedrich Meckel, the Elder Meckel's diverticulum Meckel's cartilage Jean-Baptiste Lamarck Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie Neue Deutsche Biographie Integrated Authority File
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