Johannes Evangelista Purkinje

Johannes Evangelista Purkinje

Library of Congress

[b. Libochovice, Bohemia (Czech Republic), December 17, 1787, d. Prague, July 28, 1869]

In addition to expanding our knowledge of the structure and function of the eye, Purkinje was a pioneer in the study of cells, particularly after acquiring a compound microscope in 1832. His discoveries include the nucleus in birds' eggs, sweat glands in the skin, large flask-shaped nerve cells with numerous dendrites in the cerebellum (now called Purkinje cells), and muscle fibers in the heart that conduct stimuli from the pacemaker (Purkinje fibers). He was the first to realize that fingerprints can be used for identification, the first to describe the movement of cilia, and the first to use a microtome (an instrument used to slice tissue into thin sections for microscopic examination).

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Purkinje, Jan Evangelista (1787-1869), Czech physiologist. Working at the University of Breslau (from 1823), then Prague (from 1850), he made major contributions to understanding the physiology of the eye, discovered the Purkinje fibres in the wall of the heart that are used today to transmit the stimulus of a pacemaker, and worked on plant cells, muscles, and other topics. He pioneered the use of photomicrography to aid the examination of microscopic samples; improved the stroboscopic viewer of Simon Stampfer and J. A. F. Plateau with his Phorolyt of 1841, which was marketed in two sizes as a scientific toy; and produced in the 1850s a disc holding nine posed photographs of a simple movement intended for projection when his Kinesiskop viewer was attached to a magic lantern. With this apparatus, in 1861, he demonstrated the action of the human heart and the circulation of blood, using individual photographs of each sequence of the heart's movement. His Kinesiskop discs were used in his lectures throughout the decade; one survives at the Technical Museum, Prague.

— Deac Rossell

Purkinje, Johannes Evangelista (yōhän'əs ā'väng-gālĭs'tä pʊr'kĭnyā) , 1787–1869, Czech physiologist. While professor (1823–50) at the Univ. of Breslau he pioneered in establishing laboratory training in German universities. From 1850 he was professor at Charles Univ., Prague, and was active in the Czech nationalist movement. He improved microscope technique and made numerous contributions in the fields of histology and embryology. He discovered the apertures of the sweat glands and the large ramified nerve cells of the cerebellum now known by his name. In his research in ophthalmology he worked on the functions of the eye, studied subjective visual figures and recurrent images, and described important phenomena concerning the eye's sensitivity to color.

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Meaning #1: Bohemian physiologist remembered for his discovery of Purkinje cells and the Purkinje network (1787-1869)
  Synonyms: Purkinje, Jan Evangelista Purkinje

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