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Mikhail Stepanovich Voronin (also spelled Woronin; russian: Михаи́л Степа́нович Воро́нин, 1838-1903) was a prominent
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
n
biologist
A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...
, a
botanist
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...
with particular expertise in
fungi
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
.
Voronin was born in
St Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
on 21 June (2 July/August
old calendar
Old Calendarists (Greek language, Greek: ''palaioimerologitai'' or ''palaioimerologites''), also known as Old Feasters (''palaioeortologitai''), Genuine Orthodox Christians or True Orthodox Christians (GOC; ), are traditionalist groups of Easte ...
) 1838 into the family of a rich merchant, which was subsequently ennobled.
Education
He received an excellent home education. One of his teachers was
Nikolay Chernyshevsky
Nikolay Gavrilovich Chernyshevsky ( – ) was a Russian literary and social critic, journalist, novelist, democrat, and socialist philosopher, often identified as a utopian socialist and leading theoretician of Russian nihilism. He was t ...
(still a student, but later to become a famous Russian writer). M.S. Voronin had a perfect command of three foreign languages:
French,
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
.
In 1854 Voronin entered
Saint Petersburg State University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...
in the Department of
Natural Sciences
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
. Professor
Lev Semionovich Tsenkovsky excited in him an interest in investigating the
lower plants
Non-vascular plants are plants without a vascular system consisting of xylem and phloem. Instead, they may possess simpler tissues that have specialized functions for the internal transport of water.
Non-vascular plants include two distantly rel ...
, among which
fungi
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
were placed that time. In 1858 he graduated from the University, after which, according to the recommendation of L.S. Tsenkovsky, he went with his friend, A.S. Famintsyn, to probation to
Freiburg University
The University of Freiburg (colloquially german: Uni Freiburg), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (german: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg), is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemb ...
(Germany) to
Professor de Bary.
Although de Bary intensively investigated fungi, he suggested that Voronin study anatomical peculiarities of the shrub, ''
Calycanthus
''Calycanthus'', called sweetshrub, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Calycanthaceae. The genus includes two to four species depending on taxonomic interpretation; three are accepted by most 21st century sources.
Description
''Calyca ...
''. Voronin's first
scientific article
: ''For a broader class of literature, see Academic publishing.''
Scientific literature comprises scholarly publications that report original empirical and theoretical work in the natural and social sciences. Within an academic field, scient ...
, published in the journal "
Botanische Zeitung
The Regensburg Botanical Society (''Regensburgische Botanische Gesellschaft''), founded 1790 in the city of Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany, is the oldest extant scientific society focused on botany. It was initially supported by the Prince-Archbi ...
" (1860) was devoted to this question. Later on friends were introduced to the renowned
algologist, G. Ture, who proposed that Voronin investigate phases of development of the Mediterranean alga, ''
Acetabularia
''Acetabularia'' is a genus of green algae in the family Polyphysaceae, Typically found in subtropical waters, ''Acetabularia'' is a single-celled organism, but gigantic in size and complex in form, making it an excellent model organism for stu ...
''. M.S. Voronin thoroughly studied the
ontogenesis
Ontogeny (also ontogenesis) is the origination and development of an organism (both physical and psychological, e.g., moral development), usually from the time of fertilization of the egg to adult. The term can also be used to refer to the st ...
of ''Acetabularia'' and demonstrated that it was the initial stage in the developmental cycle of other forms of
algae
Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...
. As a result, a large amount of experimental data was accumulated, which underlay Voronin's
master's
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. dissertation "Investigations of sea algae". He successfully defended this work in St Petersburg University in May 1861.
Early career
Still working in Freiburg, Voronin decided to devote himself to the investigation of fungi. After taking a
Master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. in botany he refused a paying position at the University, because he did not want to be diverted from his scientific investigations. The means of his family allowed him not only to subsist comfortably, but to establish an equipped scientific laboratory at home. In this laboratory he started his first investigation on fungi, dealing with the bread
mould, ''Monilia''. The work turned out to be very complicated and it became necessary to consult with de Bary.
In 1863 he went to Freiburg, where he worked on the peculiarities of mould development. He studied in passing also some other fungi. His work was interrupted when he had to return to St Petersburg after the sudden death of his father. Then he continued his investigations which helped to restore mental balance. After studying the
ontogenesis
Ontogeny (also ontogenesis) is the origination and development of an organism (both physical and psychological, e.g., moral development), usually from the time of fertilization of the egg to adult. The term can also be used to refer to the st ...
of
mucoraceous moulds on bread, Voronin decided to investigate the developmental cycle of typical representatives of different groups of fungi. His attention was attracted by ''
Archimycetes
Chytridiomycetes () is a class of fungi. Members are found in soil, fresh water, and saline estuaries. They are first known from the Rhynie chert. It has recently been redefined to exclude the taxa Neocallimastigomycota and Monoblepharidomycet ...
'', in particular representatives of the genus ''
Synchytrium
''Synchytrium'' is a large genus of plant pathogens within the phylum Chytridiomycota. Species are commonly known as false rust or wart disease. Approximately 200 species are described,Karling, J.S. 1964. ''Synchytrium''.Academic Press: New York. ...
'', parasites of
vascular plant
Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes () or collectively Tracheophyta (), form a large group of land plants ( accepted known species) that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They al ...
s. The same group of fungi fell into the sphere of interests of de Bary. In the course of correspondence the two scientists agreed to carry on collaborative investigations.
At the same time Voronin took a great interest in another subject -
tubercle
In anatomy, a tubercle (literally 'small tuber', Latin for 'lump') is any round nodule, small eminence, or warty outgrowth found on external or internal organs of a plant or an animal.
In plants
A tubercle is generally a wart-like projection ...
s on
lupin
''Lupinus'', commonly known as lupin, lupine, or regionally bluebonnet etc., is a genus of plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The genus includes over 199 species, with centers of diversity in North and South America. Smaller centers occur ...
roots. A thorough investigation revealed the cause of these structures' formation. On numerous microscope
sections
Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea
* Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents
** Section sig ...
it was observed, that the
cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
Cell may also refer to:
Locations
* Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
s of tubercles were filled with rod-like
bacteria
Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...
, which Voronin called "root nodule bacteria". After experimentation, he demonstrated the possibility of artificial inoculation of lupin roots, and then also roots of the
alder
Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...
tree, by nodule bacteria. He came to the conclusion that bacteria, like fungi, could cause plant diseases.
But his interest in fungi was still strong. Living now on the outskirts of St. Petersburg along with his family Voronin often made excursions to nearby forests. During one of these excursions he noticed red spots on the upper side of some leaves of
cowberry. After investigating thousands of plants with similar spots on their leaves, Voronin was able to describe a new species - ''Exobasidium vaccinii''. On the basis of this fungus, a new
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
and
order of fungi was established. Investigation of ''Exobasidium'' on the cowberry was carried on in the classic manner: developmental phases of the species were studied in detail, different sensitivities of flowers and leaves to the fungus was established and correlation between the age of plant and its receptivity was revealed. Later on this work underlay the teaching on immunity in plants.
In the summer of 1866 Voronin went abroad with his family and continued work with de Bary. They wrote a book together, "Materials on morphology and physiology of fungi" (in German), which became one of the fundamental books about fungi.
In the spring of 1867 Voronin returned to Russia, where he continued his scientific work and also actively participated in scientific-public life. Voronin repeatedly was a sponsor of his
alma mater: endowed the building of a
greenhouse
A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...
in the
Botanical Garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
of the University, refused the salary of senior lecturer (from 1869 to 1870 he lectured
mycology
Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to humans, including as a source for tinder, traditional medicine, food, and entheogens, as ...
at St Petersburg University) in favour of purchasing of study aids for the botanical
laboratory
A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physicia ...
.
In 1868 in St Petersburg the Naturalists Society was organized into three departments (botanical, zoological and mineralogical). Voronin was elected as a secretary of the Botanical Department. On periodic meetings of the department he reported the results of his investigations, introduced synopses of works of foreign scientists on fungi, algae and lichens, and also on general problems of biology, and he participated in discussions of the reports of other members of the society. As a result M.S. Voronin struck up many of interesting scientific contacts both with venerable Russian scientists and with scientific youth. At the Second Meeting of Naturalists and Physicians of Russia (August, 1869, Moscow) Voronin was elected the secretary of the section of botany, anatomy and physiology of plants.
However his scientific work always remained foremost for Voronin. At the end of the 1860s and beginning of the 1870s his attention was attracted by two practical scientific problems:
rust
Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH ...
of the sunflower and
club root. In 1868-1869 this disease achieved menacing amplitude in Russia, in particular in
Voronezh
Voronezh ( rus, links=no, Воро́неж, p=vɐˈronʲɪʂ}) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the ...
province. The "Agricultural Newspaper" appealed to Voronin for help. He immediately commenced an investigation of the pest, studied its
life cycle
Life cycle, life-cycle, or lifecycle may refer to:
Science and academia
*Biological life cycle, the sequence of life stages that an organism undergoes from birth to reproduction ending with the production of the offspring
* Life-cycle hypothesis ...
, established the presence of summer and winter (autumn) spores, revealed that spreading of the fungus agent as well as the disease caused by it are promoted by thickness of planting and non-observance of
crop rotation
Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of different types of crops in the same area across a sequence of growing seasons. It reduces reliance on one set of nutrients, pest and weed pressure, and the probability of developing resistant ...
. Based on this example of rust on sunflowers, Voronin formulated major rules of the mass spreading of fungal diseases of plants.
At the same time (1869) near St Petersburg and other north-western regions of Russia club root disease began to spread. The losses of transporters were so significant, that the Russian Society of Horticulturists in 1872 announced a competition to reveal the cause of this disease. M.S. Voronin succeeded, showing that it was the
slime mold
Slime mold or slime mould is an informal name given to several kinds of unrelated eukaryotic organisms with a life cycle that includes a free-living single-celled stage and the formation of spores. Spores are often produced in macroscopic mu ...
''Plasmodiophora brassicae''.
Later career
In 1874 Voronin was elected honorary member of the
Moscow Naturalists Society. In 1875, the Council of
New Russia University (
Odessa
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...
) conferred him the degree of Doctor of Botany
honoris causa
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
. However Voronin continued his investigation of ''Plasmodiophora brassicae'' - an organism with an intricate developmental cycle. During the period from 1873 to 1878 he published six articles on the agent and the disease. The Russian Society of horticulturists in 1878 awarded him a gold medal for his investigations of the club root.
In 1877-1878 Voronin lived abroad, but after his wife's death he predominantly devoted himself to the education of his children. And only after returning to Russia, did he begin a new cycle of investigations on the biology and classification of
smut fungi
The smuts are multicellular fungi characterized by their large numbers of teliospores. The smuts get their name from a Germanic word for dirt because of their dark, thick-walled, and dust-like teliospores. They are mostly Ustilaginomycetes (phylum ...
. These fungi had attracted his interest as early as 1865, when he managed to collect ''Tuburcinia trientalis'' on the outskirts of St Petersburg. 16 years after, in 1881, he published his summarized work on smut fungi in Frankfurt in "Transactions of Zenkenberg Naturalists Society". De Bary used Voronin's materials on smut fungi in his variant of natural classification of fungi.
The life and activity of Voronin were tightly bound with the life and activity of his preceptor and friend - A. de Bary. So, when in October 1880
Strasburg University celebrated the 25th anniversary de Bary's professorship, Voronin took part in the celebration and brought, as a present, the new species of alga named after de Bary - ''Vaucheria debaryana''. On the occasion of this celebration, where the pick of European botanists were assembled, his colleagues saw M.S. Voronin and his role in the development of mycology in a new light. As a result, in 1881 the Vienna Botanical Society elected him as an honorary member, in 1882 the
Russian Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across t ...
conferred him with the Academician Ber Prize, in 1883 the Berlin Naturalists Society elected him as a corresponding member, and finally, in 1884 he was elected corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
But M. S. Voronin took all honours lightly. His attention was attracted by new unstudied problems of mycology. In the 1880s he concentrated on an investigation of fungi of the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
''
Sclerotinia
''Sclerotinia'' is a genus of fungi
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are ...
'', which remained his favourite object of study until the end of his life. Voronin studied developmental cycles, described new species of this genus on
bilberries
Bilberries (), or sometimes European blueberries, are a primarily Eurasian species of low-growing shrubs in the genus ''Vaccinium'' (family Ericaceae), bearing edible, dark blue berries. The species most often referred to is ''Vaccinium myrtillu ...
,
cowberries, great bilberries,
cranberries
Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus ''Oxycoccus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''. In Britain, cranberry may refer to the native species ''Vaccinium oxycoccos'', while in North America, cranberry ...
, and investigated ''Sclerotinia'' on
bird tree and
mountain ash Mountain ash may refer to:
* ''Eucalyptus regnans'', the tallest of all flowering plants, native to Australia
* Mountain-ashes or rowans, varieties of trees and shrubs in the genus ''Sorbus''
See also
* Mountain Ash, Rhondda Cynon Taf
Mounta ...
.
In 1898 M.S. Voronin established the relationship between
anamorph
In mycology, the terms teleomorph, anamorph, and holomorph apply to portions of the life cycles of fungi in the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota:
*Teleomorph: the sexual reproductive stage (morph), typically a fruiting body.
*Anamorph: an ase ...
s of the genus ''Monilia'' on
cherry
A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit).
Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...
and seed fruit trees, and
teleomorph
In mycology, the terms teleomorph, anamorph, and holomorph apply to portions of the life cycles of fungi in the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota:
*Teleomorph: the sexual reproductive stage (morph), typically a fruiting body.
*Anamorph: an ase ...
s of the genus ''Sclerotinia''. He dedicated his main work on ''Sclerotinia'', "On Sclerotinia, affected plants of genus Vaccinium," (1888) to his teacher and friend A. de Bary, who died in January 1888.
In 1889 the head of the Emigrant Department of South-
Ussuriysk Territory of Russia, F.F. Busse, made a request to M.S. Voronin to discover the cause of a widespread and dangerous disease in the territory called "tempulent corn" or scab. Voronin received numerous specimens of affected cereal plants and he began his investigation. He found numerous species of fungi on affected ears, ranked them by extent of potential harm for human and animals and then singled out two the most probable initiators of the disease (it turned out subsequently that they were two stages of the same fungus). Comparing the intensity of manifestation of disease with meteorological data in the territory, Voronin came to the conclusion that the agent of scab developed intensively in rainy and warm weather when harvested cereals were stacked directly on the ground.
Reputation
The renown of Voronin grew from year to year, his name was held in respect in scientific groups of Europe and America. Scientific societies were proud to list Voronin among their honorary members. In 1889 he was elected a full member of the
Russian Geographical Society
The Russian Geographical Society (russian: Ру́сское географи́ческое о́бщество «РГО»), or RGO, is a learned society based in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It promotes geography, exploration and nature protection wi ...
, honorary member of the Society of Amateurs in Anthropology and Ethnography in Moscow, in 1894 - honorary member of the Moscow Naturalists Society and the Petersburg Naturalists Society, in 1895 - honorary member of the Russian Society of Horticulture and a foreign member of the
Linnaean Society
The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...
in London. And finally, in 1898, Voronin became an Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In 1899 he was inducted as an honorary member into the Scientific Committee of the Ministry of Agriculture and State Properties, and in the same year he was invited to head the Department of Cryptogam Plants of the Botanical Museum Russian Academy of Sciences, in 1902 he was elected an honorary member of Kharkov and Yuryev Universities.
M.S. Voronin died of
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
on 20 February (5 March old calendar) 1903.
References
See also
*
University of Freiburg Faculty of Biology
The Faculty of Biology is one of the eleven faculties of the University of Freiburg in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is part of a strong life sciences network including institutions such as the Max Planck Institute of Im ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Voronin, Mikhail Stepanovich
1838 births
1903 deaths
19th-century botanists from the Russian Empire
Full members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences
Deaths from pneumonia in Russia