George Joyliffe (1621–1658), sometimes Latinised as Iolivius or Jolivius, was an English anatomist and physician. He discovered the lymphatics of the liver in collaboration with
Glisson and was one of three (together with
Rudbeck and
Bartholine) to have discovered the
lymphatic system
The lymphatic system, or lymphoid system, is an organ system in vertebrates that is part of the immune system, and complementary to the circulatory system. It consists of a large network of lymphatic vessels, lymph nodes, lymphatic or lymphoid o ...
independently at about the same time.
Life
Origins and education
George Joyliffe, the son of John Joyliffe of
East Stower, Dorsetshire, was born there in 1621. In 1637, when sixteen years old, he became a member of
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road.
Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...
, but migrated to
Pembroke College, whence he graduated
BA in June 1640, and
MA in April 1643. He served as a lieutenant in the
Royal Army under
Lord Hopton in 1643. He studied medicine under
Thomas Clayton
Thomas Clayton (July 1777 – August 21, 1854) was an American lawyer and politician from Dover in Kent County, Delaware. He was a member of the Federalist Party and later the National Republican Party and the Whig Party. He served in the Delawa ...
, Master of Pembroke College, and Regius Professor of Physic, and in April 1650 entered
Clare Hall, Cambridge
Clare Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. Founded in 1966 by Clare College, Clare Hall is a college for advanced study, admitting only postgraduate students alongside postdoctoral researchers and fellows. It ...
, as a fellow-commoner, became acquainted with
Francis Glisson
Francis Glisson (1597 – 14 October 1677Guido Giglioni'Glisson, Francis (1599?–1677)' ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 2006, accessed 31 December 2008) was a British physicia ...
, the Regius Professor of Physic, and took the degree of
MD on 1 July 1652.
[Moore 1892, p. 221.]
Discovery of the lymphatics
Joyliffe told Glisson when he called on him to make the necessary arrangements for graduation, that besides arteries, veins, and nerves, a fourth and distinct set of vessels existed, distributed to several parts of the body, and containing a watery
humour
Humour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humorism, humoral medicine of the ancient Gre ...
. He had, he said, made out these vessels in numerous animals and in several parts of the body, and he was sure that the fluid contained in them moved towards the
mesentery
The mesentery is an organ that attaches the intestines to the posterior abdominal wall in humans and is formed by the double fold of peritoneum. It helps in storing fat and allowing blood vessels, lymphatics, and nerves to supply the intestines ...
, and especially towards the beginning of it.
[Glisson 1654. Chap. 31. pp. 266–267.] Glisson's statement, first published in 1654, is conclusive evidence as to the originality of Joyliffe's anatomical discovery of the
lymph ducts, and was no doubt made then because of the publications of
Rudbeck (''Exercitatio exhibens ductus Hepaticos Aquosos et Vasa Glandularum Serosa'', Westeräs, 1653) and of
Thomas Bartholinus (''Vasa Lymphatica'', Copenhagen, 1653), both anatomists who had also dissected out the main
lymphatic trunks. Joyliffe did not himself make his discovery known in print.
Later life and death
Joyliffe was admitted a Candidate of the
College of Physicians on 4 April 1653, lectured there on the vasa lymphatica, and was elected a Fellow on 25 June 1658. His house was on Garlick Hill, London, and there he died on 11 November 1658.
Notes
References
* Glisson, Francis (1654). ''
Anatomia hepatis''. London. Chap. 31. pp. 266–269.
*
* Oster, Malcolm (2004)
"Joyliffe, George (1621–1658), anatomist and physician" In ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''. Oxford University Press.
* Tallaksen, Robert (2022)
"List of physicians and apothecaries cited by Andrew Slee and John Ward" ''Folgerpedia''. Folger Shakespeare Library.
"Joyliffe, George (b.c.1618 d.11 November 1658)" ''RCP Museum''. Royal College of Physicians.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joyliffe, George
1621 births
1658 deaths
17th-century English medical doctors
Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons