Antoine Ferrein (October 25, 1693 – February 28, 1769) was a French

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having its ...

who was a native of Frespech, which today is a commune in the

arrondissement of Villeneuve-sur-Lot The arrondissement of Villeneuve-sur-Lot is an arrondissement of France in the Lot-et-Garonne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine région. It has 92 communes. Its population is 89,667 (2016), and its area is . Composition The communes of the a ...

. He was a professor at the Collège Royal in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, and in 1742 became a member of the

Académie des sciences The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research. It was at th ...

. Ferrein is remembered for his work involving the

physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

of voice, and is credited for coining the term ''cordes vocales'' (

vocal cords In humans, vocal cords, also known as vocal folds or voice reeds, are folds of throat tissues that are key in creating sounds through vocalization. The size of vocal cords affects the pitch of voice. Open when breathing and vibrating for speec ...

). He postulated that the ligaments of the

larynx The larynx (), commonly called the voice box, is an organ in the top of the neck involved in breathing, producing sound and protecting the trachea against food aspiration. The opening of larynx into pharynx known as the laryngeal inlet is about ...

were analogous to the cords on a

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

. He also made the correlation between the size of the

glottis The glottis is the opening between the vocal folds (the rima glottidis). The glottis is crucial in producing vowels and voiced consonants. Etymology From Ancient Greek ''γλωττίς'' (glōttís), derived from ''γλῶττα'' (glôtta), va ...

and the loudness of a person's voice. There are several anatomical eponyms attributed to Antoine Ferrein, including: * "Ferrein's canal": (rivus lacrimalis); A space between the

eyelid An eyelid is a thin fold of skin that covers and protects an eye. The levator palpebrae superioris muscle retracts the eyelid, exposing the cornea to the outside, giving vision. This can be either voluntarily or involuntarily. The human eyel ...

s when closed and the

eyeball Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and con ...

through which tears flow to the

lacrimal punctum The lacrimal punctum (plural ''puncta'') or lacrimal point, is a minute opening on the summits of the lacrimal papillae, seen on the margins of the eyelids at the lateral extremity of the lacrimal lake. There are two lacrimal puncta in the medial ( ...

. * "Ferrein's foramen": Hiatus of facial canal that makes passage for the

greater petrosal nerve The greater petrosal nerve (or greater superficial petrosal nerve) is a nerve in the skull that branches from the facial nerve; it forms part of a chain of nerves that innervate the lacrimal gland. The preganglionic parasympathetic axons of this ne ...

. * "Ferrein's ligament": The thickened external portion of the capsule of the

temporomandibular joint In anatomy, the temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are the two joints connecting the jawbone to the skull. It is a bilateral synovial articulation between the temporal bone of the skull above and the mandible below; it is from these bones that it ...

. * "Ferrein's pyramid": Also known as the medullary ray, which is the center of the

renal The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; bloo ...

lobule, and is shaped like a small pyramid. * "Ferrein's vasa aberrantia": Aberrant biliary canaliculi that have no connectivity with

hepatic The liver is a major organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it is ...

lobules.

References

Mondofacto Dictionary
(definition of eponyms)

References

Further reading