The Extraordinary Career of Dr Purkinje

After innumerable observations, I have found nine important varieties of pattern of rugae and sulci serving for touch on the palmar surface of the terminal phalanges of the fingers.Jan Evangelista Purkinje, 1823For every student of histopathology, the name Purkinje immediately invokes images of neurons in the cerebellum and subendocardial fibers in the heart. Their famous discoverer, Jan Evangelista Purkinje, with his astounding range of interests spanning histology, physiology, pharmacology, visual phenomena, and fingerprints, left an indelible mark on medicine. In his innovations and original thinking, Purkinje was clearly ahead of his time and far ahead of his contemporaries, who failed to fully appreciate him. This was further compounded by the fact that several noted scientific works of this passionate Czech nationalist were published in his native tongue and remained in relative obscurity for almost a century. In addition, Purkinje was an unassuming scientist who did not publicize or champion his own revolutionary ideas and innovations, which were at the forefront of medicine. For Purkinje, it was not a question of personal gain or glory—it was enough that scientific progress was made.Purkinje (1787–1869), Czech patriot, philosopher, and scientist, was born December 17, 1787, in Libochovice, Bohemia. His name is correctly spelled Purkyně in Czech, but in his publications, he opted for the use of the form Purkinje, which is its phonetic approximation in German. With the death of his father when Purkinje was only 6 years old, his family faced difficult times. The second decade of Purkinje's life was spent studying in monasteries of the Piarist Order, but he would not take his final vows to become a priest.Although Czech was his native language, Purkinje's linguistic talents extended to an extraordinary number of European languages. After leaving the Piarist Order in 1807, Purkinje arrived in Prague, initially devoting himself to philosophy, mathematics, literature, and poetry (he created some of his own poetic compositions in Czech). Then he turned to physics and biological sciences.Purkinje's medical studies began in 1813 in Prague. He was influenced by J. W. Goethe's vision theory, and his inaugural dissertation was on subjective visual phenomena. After graduation, Purkinje worked as an assistant in anatomy and physiology at the University of Prague.His ground dissertation and Goethe's support and friendship won him an appointment as a professor of pathology and physiology at Breslau University, Prussia, in 1823. This would mark the dawn of a productive era in Purkinje's eclectic career as a scientist and pioneer in medical research, an era that would last 27 years.As a foreigner in Breslau, Purkinje worked in a hostile environment and met with many hindrances. But in time his superior knowledge won him respect even from his critics. It was in 1823 that Purkinje published one of his most famous works in Latin, Commentatio de examine physiologico organi visus et systematis cutanei. This text expanded on some of his previous work on visual phenomena, including a description of the Purkinje images. It also contained, in the segment devoted to skin, a detailed account and classification of furrows on fingertips, thus establishing the foundations of the modern science of dermatoglyphics long before Francis Galton.In 1825, Purkinje published a book based on his extensive studies and research on vision. Included in this text were many facets of his work, such as the Purkinje figures—reflections of bright objects on the surface of the cornea and the lens. He also described the principles and method that created the basis for optometry and retinoscopy. Purkinje had, in fact, created the predecessor of the ophthalmoscope, which would bring Hermann von Helmholtz international acclaim. Purkinje, who had managed to view the interior of the human and dog's eye, received little recognition for his pioneer discovery.Purkinje made numerous scientific contributions during his fruitful academic years at Breslau. After several years of struggling to get the microscope he wanted, Purkinje explored the secrets of the human body and drew his own illustrations to document new histologic observations. One important line of his research focused on the development of the ovum in a hen's ovary and isolating the germinal vesicle (Purkinje's vesicle). The indefatigable Purkinje made pioneering observations in histology and used the forerunner of the modern microtome instead of cutting histologic sections freehand with a razor. He also improvised techniques to render tissues firmer for better sectioning. Purkinje was the first to make glass slide mounts with Canada balsam.Purkinje used his microscope to describe the structure of blood vessels and sweat glands in the skin. He was the first to coin the word protoplasm for embryologic material. He improved on methods to decalcify bones and teeth using more dilute solutions for decalcification and described the detailed microscopic anatomy of teeth and bones. He also demonstrated cilia in the epithelium of mammalian oviducts. Purkinje and his pupil, Gustav Valentin, extensively studied ciliary movement. Purkinje made several neuroanatomic observations of note, including the cerebellar neurons named after him. He also studied the basic structure of plants and animals and suggested that an animal had 3 basic constituents—the fluid, fibrous, and granular components, with the granule being similar to plant cells. With these fundamental observations, Purkinje had in fact laid down the very foundations of the cell theory well before Theodor Schwann.Purkinje was an extraordinary pharmacologist, and his experiments outlining the action of drugs such as digitalis, camphor, and belladonna were performed on himself. He studied vertigo, deafness, nystagmus, and gastric secretion. This visionary scientist also laid down the foundations of dermatoglyphics. Commentatio de examine physiologico organi visus et systematis cutanei described 9 varieties of fingerprint patterns—transverse curves, central longitudinal stria, oblique stripe, oblique loop, almond, spiral, ellipse, circle, and double whorl. This 58-page thesis remains one of the classics in scientific literature.At Breslau, Purkinje revolutionized the system of teaching physiology, especially in terms of practical demonstrations and experimental physiology. He faced many struggles in trying to establish an independent physiological institute. Since he could not get official permission to establish one at Breslau University, he erected one in his own home in Breslau. This marked the beginnings of the first physiological institute in the world. Purkinje's dream for this special physiological institute would eventually come true after years of struggle, when a small building was made available to him in 1839.Unfortunately, tragedy struck Purkinje when his 2 daughters succumbed to a cholera epidemic and his wife died of typhoid. In 1850, Purkinje moved to Prague to become chair of physiology, returning as a scientist and teacher of world repute. Intrigued with the early phases of photography, he became a pioneer in photographing microscopic material. He also constructed his own stroboscope and kinesiscope. His vision and efforts made possible the creation of a physiological institute in Prague, whose new laboratories opened in 1851. Purkinje was also instrumental in founding the Society of Czech Physicians and the Czech Medical Journal.Purkinje died on July 28, 1869. A commemorative symposium held in Prague in 1969 marked the 100th anniversary of his death, and his name lives on in several medical eponyms. The extraordinary scientific observations of Purkinje were indeed ahead of his time and would be rediscovered by others in years to come. Examples include Schwann formulating the cell theory and the ophthalmoscope allowing a glimpse at the human retina. And, in time, the world would recognize the importance of fingerprints.

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