Paul Uhlenhuth
Encyclopedia
Paul Theodor Uhlenhuth was a German bacteriologist and hygienist and an assistant professor at the Institute of Hygiene at the University of Greifswald. He is famous in the annals of forensic science for developing the species precipitin test which could distinguish human blood from animal blood.
Starting with the a significant discovery by Emil von Behring that animals inoculated with diphtheria toxin formed defensive substances in their blood serum
. These defensive substances were named precipitins. Other scientists principally Jules Bordet
tried devising serums against other infectious agents they found that the precipitins were specific to the antagonist injected. In 1900 building off Bordet's work Uhlenhuth injected hen's blood into rabbits, then mixed serum from the rabbit with egg white the egg proteins separated (precipitated) from the mixture. He was able to conclude that the blood of different species animals contained unique proteins. These discoveries extended to being able to differentiate human blood from animal blood.
Fellow scientist, Otto Beumer, professor of forensic medicine at the University of Greifswald and the coroner
of Greifswald
learned of Uhlenhuth's work and joined him in perfecting the detection of human blood in dried bloodstains that were months or years old.
His new technique was first used in the case of two murdered and dismembered children in the town of Göhren
on the Baltic
island of Rügen
. The suspect in the case, Ludwig Tessnow claimed that the stains on his clothing were either cattle's blood or wood stain from a carpentry project. They were able to prove otherwise. Tessnow was executed for his crime in 1904.
In 1935 Wilhelm Pfannenstiel
Professor of Hygiene at the University of Marburg nominated Uhlenhuth for the Nobel Prize in Medicine
for his work in chemotherapy
.
In 1915 Uhlenhoth was co-discoverer of Leptospira interrogans strain RGA a cause of Weil's disease
a severe form of leptospirosis characterized by characterized by epistaxis, jaundice
, chills, fever
, muscle pain, and hepatomegaly
, it was one of the many ailments to afflict soldiers involved in the trench warfare
of World War I.
In 1942 he was awarded the Emil von Behring prize,which is awarded every two years by the University of Marburg for outstanding achievements in immunology, serum therapy and chemotherapy. Uhlenhuth had multiple articles published in peer reviewed journals and was an active researcher in various areas of bacteriology and immunology
including research into chemotherapy and syphilis
.Paul Ehrlich
winner of the 1908 Nobel Prize in Medicine was an associate of Uhlenhuth.
Starting with the a significant discovery by Emil von Behring that animals inoculated with diphtheria toxin formed defensive substances in their blood serum
Blood serum
In blood, the serum is the component that is neither a blood cell nor a clotting factor; it is the blood plasma with the fibrinogens removed...
. These defensive substances were named precipitins. Other scientists principally Jules Bordet
Jules Bordet
Jules Jean Baptiste Vincent Bordet was a Belgian immunologist and microbiologist. The bacterial genus Bordetella is named after him.-Biography:Bordet was born at Soignies, Belgium...
tried devising serums against other infectious agents they found that the precipitins were specific to the antagonist injected. In 1900 building off Bordet's work Uhlenhuth injected hen's blood into rabbits, then mixed serum from the rabbit with egg white the egg proteins separated (precipitated) from the mixture. He was able to conclude that the blood of different species animals contained unique proteins. These discoveries extended to being able to differentiate human blood from animal blood.
Fellow scientist, Otto Beumer, professor of forensic medicine at the University of Greifswald and the coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
of Greifswald
Greifswald
Greifswald , officially, the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald is a town in northeastern Germany. It is situated in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, at an equal distance of about from Germany's two largest cities, Berlin and Hamburg. The town borders the Baltic Sea, and is crossed...
learned of Uhlenhuth's work and joined him in perfecting the detection of human blood in dried bloodstains that were months or years old.
His new technique was first used in the case of two murdered and dismembered children in the town of Göhren
Göhren, Rügen
Göhren is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.-External links:...
on the Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
island of Rügen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
. The suspect in the case, Ludwig Tessnow claimed that the stains on his clothing were either cattle's blood or wood stain from a carpentry project. They were able to prove otherwise. Tessnow was executed for his crime in 1904.
In 1935 Wilhelm Pfannenstiel
Wilhelm Pfannenstiel
Wilhelm Hermann Pfannenstiel was a physician and SS-Standartenführer and a member of the Nazi party . He was born in the city of Breslau, Lower Silesia, which passed to Poland after the war and is now called Wrocław...
Professor of Hygiene at the University of Marburg nominated Uhlenhuth for the Nobel Prize in Medicine
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
for his work in chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
.
In 1915 Uhlenhoth was co-discoverer of Leptospira interrogans strain RGA a cause of Weil's disease
Leptospirosis
Leptospirosis is caused by infection with bacteria of the genus Leptospira, and affects humans as well as other mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles.The...
a severe form of leptospirosis characterized by characterized by epistaxis, jaundice
Jaundice
Jaundice is a yellowish pigmentation of the skin, the conjunctival membranes over the sclerae , and other mucous membranes caused by hyperbilirubinemia . This hyperbilirubinemia subsequently causes increased levels of bilirubin in the extracellular fluid...
, chills, fever
Fever
Fever is a common medical sign characterized by an elevation of temperature above the normal range of due to an increase in the body temperature regulatory set-point. This increase in set-point triggers increased muscle tone and shivering.As a person's temperature increases, there is, in...
, muscle pain, and hepatomegaly
Hepatomegaly
Hepatomegaly is the condition of having an enlarged liver. It is a nonspecific medical sign having many causes, which can broadly be broken down into infection, direct toxicity, hepatic tumours, or metabolic disorder. Often, hepatomegaly will present as an abdominal mass...
, it was one of the many ailments to afflict soldiers involved in the trench warfare
Trench warfare
Trench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
of World War I.
In 1942 he was awarded the Emil von Behring prize,which is awarded every two years by the University of Marburg for outstanding achievements in immunology, serum therapy and chemotherapy. Uhlenhuth had multiple articles published in peer reviewed journals and was an active researcher in various areas of bacteriology and immunology
Immunology
Immunology is a broad branch of biomedical science that covers the study of all aspects of the immune system in all organisms. It deals with the physiological functioning of the immune system in states of both health and diseases; malfunctions of the immune system in immunological disorders ; the...
including research into chemotherapy and syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
.Paul Ehrlich
Paul Ehrlich
Paul Ehrlich was a German scientist in the fields of hematology, immunology, and chemotherapy, and Nobel laureate. He is noted for curing syphilis and for his research in autoimmunity, calling it "horror autotoxicus"...
winner of the 1908 Nobel Prize in Medicine was an associate of Uhlenhuth.
Uhlenhuth's Bibliography
- Das Biologische Verfahren Zur Erkennung Und Unterscheidung Von Menschen Und Tierblut (1905) by Paul Theodor Uhlenhuth Publisher: Kessinger Pub Co (November 2009) Language: German ISBN 101120444667 ISBN 978-1-120-44466-0
- Uhlenhuth, P., and Mulzer, P.: Gelungene Verimpfung von Blut, Blut-serum und Sperma syphilitischer Menschen in die Hoden von Kaninchen. Berl. klin. Wchnschr., 49: 152, 1912.
- Uhlenhuth, P., and Mulzer, P.: Wei te re Mitteilungen iiber die Infektiositat des Blutes und anderer Kôrper-flussigkeiten syphilitischer Menschen fiir
- Handbuch der pathogenen Mikroorganismen. Herausgegeben von W. Kolle, R. Kraus und P. Uhlenhuth. Lieferung 41, Band VII: Weilische Krankheite. Von Prof. Dr. P. Uhlenhuth und Prof. Dr. W. Fromme. Die kurzfristigen Spirochätenfieber. Von Dr. G. Baermann. Geflügelspirochäte. Von Prof. Dr. G. Sobernheim. Die spontane Kaninchenspirochätose. Von Dr. W. Worms. Third edition. Paper. Price, 32 marks. pp. 487–752, with illustrations. Jena: Gustav Fischer, 1930