Rudolf Buchheim was a German pharmacologist who was born in
BautzenBautzen is a hill-top town in eastern Saxony, Germany, and administrative centre of the eponymous district. It is located on the Spree River. As of 2008, its population is 41,161...
. In 1845 he earned his doctorate from the
University of LeipzigThe University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
and soon after became a professor at the University of Dorpat. While at Dorpat he created the first pharmacological institute at that school. In 1867 he became professor of pharmacology and
toxicologyToxicology is a branch of biology, chemistry, and medicine concerned with the study of the adverse effects of chemicals on living organisms...
at the
University of GiessenThe University of Giessen is officially called the Justus Liebig University Giessen after its most famous faculty member, Justus von Liebig, the founder of modern agricultural chemistry and inventor of artificial fertiliser.-History:The University of Gießen is among the oldest institutions of...
.
Buchheim is remembered for his pioneer work in experimental pharmacology. He was instrumental in turning pharmacology from an empirical study of medicine into an exact science. He introduced the
bioassayBioassay , or biological standardization is a type of scientific experiment. Bioassays are typically conducted to measure the effects of a substance on a living organism and are essential in the development of new drugs and in monitoring environmental pollutants...
to pharmacology, and created a methodology for determining the quantative and medical aspects of chemical substances.
While a student in
LeipzigLeipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, Buchheim translated
Jonathan PereiraJonathan Pereira was a pharmacologist, author of the Elements of Materia Medica, a standard work. He was examiner on the subject in the University of London....
's (1804–1853) handbook of pharmacology from English into German. He also edited the book, eliminating obsolete and ineffectual medicines and practices, while adding updated information, including a chapter of his own called
Art der Wirkung (The Pharmacological Action). A well-known student of his was
chemistA chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
Oswald SchmiedebergOswald Schmiedeberg was a Baltic German pharmacologist.Schmiedeberg was born at Gut Laidsen in the Imperial Russian province of Courland. In 1866 he earned his medical doctorate from the University of Dorpat with a thesis concerning the measurement of chloroform in blood. Afterwards he was an...
(1838–1921), who was to become the "founder of modern pharmacology". Today at the University of Giessen is the Rudolf Buchheim Institute for Pharmacology.
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