Emil Ponfick (3 November 1844 – 3 November 1913) was a German

pathologist Pathology is the study of the causal, causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when us ...

born in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

. In 1867 he received his medical doctorate from the

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

, and later was an assistant to

Friedrich Daniel von Recklinghausen Friedrich Daniel von Recklinghausen (; December 2, 1833 – August 26, 1910) was a German pathologist born in Gütersloh, Westphalia. He was the father of physiologist Heinrich von Recklinghausen (1867–1942). Early life Recklinghausen was b ...

(1833–1910) at

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg is ...

, and to

Rudolf Virchow Rudolf Ludwig Carl Virchow (; or ; 13 October 18215 September 1902) was a German physician, anthropologist, pathologist, prehistorian, biologist, writer, editor, and politician. He is known as "the father of modern pathology" and as the founder ...

(1821–1902) in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. Afterwards, he succeeded

Theodor Ackermann Theodor Ackermann (17 September 1825 – 22 November 1896) was a German pathologist born in Wismar. In 1852 he obtained his medical doctorate from the University of Rostock, obtaining his habilitation a few years later (1856) with a treatise on t ...

(1825–1896) as professor of pathology at

Rostock Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...

(1873), followed by professorships at

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

(from 1876) Breslau (from 1878), where he replaced

Julius Friedrich Cohnheim Julius Friedrich Cohnheim (20 July 1839 – 15 August 1884) was a German-Jewish pathologist. Biography Cohnheim was born at Demmin, Pomerania. He studied at the universities of Würzburg, Marburg, Greifswald, and Berlin, receiving his doctoral deg ...

(1839–1884) as director of the pathological institute. He remained at the

University of Breslau A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

until his death in 1913. Ponfick is remembered for his pioneer research of

actinomycosis Actinomycosis is a rare infectious bacterial disease caused by ''Actinomyces'' species. The name refers to ray-like appearance of the organisms in the granules. About 70% of infections are due to either ''Actinomyces israelii'' or '' A. gerencseria ...

, and his recognition of the causative role ''

Actinomyces ''Actinomyces'' is a genus of the Actinomycetia class of bacteria. They all are gram-positive. ''Actinomyces'' species are facultatively anaerobic and they grow best under anaerobic conditions. ''Actinomyces'' species may form endospores, and ...

'' played in human actinomycosis. He is credited with establishing the unity of human and bovine forms of the disease. In 1882 he published ''Die Actinomykose des Menschen, eine neue Infectionskrankheit'' (Actinomycosis of humans, a new infectious disease) in regards to the disease. He also made significant contributions in his research of

myxedema Myxedema is a term used synonymously with severe hypothyroidism. However, the term is also used to describe a dermatological change that can occur in hyperthyroidism and (rare) paradoxical cases of hypothyroidism. In this latter sense, myxedema ...

, writing two articles on the disorder, ''Myxoedem und Hypophysis'' (Myxedema and hypophysis) and ''Zur Lehre vom Myxoedem'' (The doctrine of myxedema).Pagel: Biographical Dictionary
Outstanding physicians of the nineteenth century. Berlin, Vienna, 1901, 1312-1313 Sp. In 1874, Ponfick warned the Association of Baltic Physicians about the dangers of animal-to-human

blood transfusion Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used for various medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood. Early transfusions used whole blood, but mo ...

s (xenotransfusion). This warning was based on empirical experience: a patient had died after receiving blood from a sheep. The following year

physiologist 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 a ...

Leonard Landois Leonard Landois (1 December 1837 – 17 November 1902) was a German physiologist born in Münster. He studied medicine at the University of Greifswald, and was later a professor and director of the institute of physiology at Greifswald. In 1866 h ...

(1837–1902) from the

University of Greifswald The University of Greifswald (; german: Universität Greifswald), formerly also known as “Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald“, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pom ...

backed up Ponfick's findings with statistical data on the dangers of xenotransfusion.

Principal writings

* ''Die Actinomykose des Menschen, eine neue Infectionskrankheit''. Monograph,

, 1882. * ''Topographischer Atlas der medizinisch-chirurgischen Diagmostik''.

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a popu ...

, 1901 * ''Untersuchungen über die exsudative Nierenentzündung''. Text and atlas. Jena, 1914.

References

Essay on Blood Transfusions

@

Who Named It ''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograph ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ponfick, Emil German pathologists Physicians from Frankfurt 1844 births 1913 deaths Academic staff of the University of Göttingen Academic staff of the University of Rostock Academic staff of the University of Breslau