Otto Bollinger (2 April 1843 – 13 August 1909) 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

Altenkirchen, Kusel Altenkirchen () is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Kusel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Oberes Glantal, ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

. In 1868, he obtained his doctorate 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 ...

and two years later received his

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

. He taught classes at the ''Tierärtzliche Hochschule'' in

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

and in 1874 became an associate professor at the ''Tierarzneischule'' in Munich. In 1880, he succeeded

Ludwig von Buhl Ludwig von Buhl (4 January 1816 – 30 July 1880) was a German pathologist born in Munich. He studied medicine in Munich and Vienna, and in 1847 was habilitated as a lecturer of pathological anatomy and microscopy at the University of Munich. In 18 ...

(1816-1880) as professor of general pathology and

pathological anatomy Anatomical pathology (''Commonwealth'') or Anatomic pathology (''U.S.'') is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the macroscopic, microscopic, biochemical, immunologic and molecular examination ...

at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...

. Bollinger had an extensive background in

veterinary medicine Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...

and was known for his studies of

rabies Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. Early symptoms can include fever and tingling at the site of exposure. These symptoms are followed by one or more of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, vi ...

in the days before the discovery of an anti-rabies

vaccine A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verifie ...

. In 1877, he described the etiologic agent of bovine

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 ...

("lumpy jaw"), an organism that is now referred to as '' Actinomyces bovis''.
Principles of microbiology by Veranus Alva Moore He is credited with describing the

inclusion bodies Inclusion bodies are aggregates of specific types of protein found in neurons, a number of tissue cells including red blood cells, bacteria, viruses, and plants. Inclusion bodies of aggregations of multiple proteins are also found in muscle cells ...

found in tissue cells in

fowlpox Fowlpox is the worldwide disease of poultry caused by viruses of the family ''Poxviridae'' and the genus ''Avipoxvirus''. The viruses causing fowlpox are distinct from one another but antigenically similar, possible hosts including chickens, tur ...

. These bodies contain the fowlpox

virus A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Since Dmitri Ivanovsky's 1 ...

and are now referred to as Bollinger bodies. His name is also associated with "Bollinger granules", defined as small yellowish-white granules that cluster, contain

micrococci ''Micrococcus'' (mi’ krō kŏk’ Əs) is a genus of bacteria in the Micrococcaceae family. ''Micrococcus'' occurs in a wide range of environments, including water, dust, and soil. Micrococci have Gram-positive spherical cells ranging from abo ...

, and are seen in the

granulation tissue Granulation tissue is new connective tissue and microscopic blood vessels that form on the surfaces of a wound during the healing process. Granulation tissue typically grows from the base of a wound and is able to fill wounds of almost any size ...

botryomycosis Botryomycosis is a bacterial skin infection that typically presents with crusted, purulent large bumps. Sulphur granules generally discharge via sinuses, which heal leaving thin skinned scars. Presentation Associated conditions There are only a ...

. In 1891, Bollinger provided an early description of a delayed traumatic

apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...

he called "''traumatische Spät-Apoplexie''". Today, this condition is called "delayed traumatic

intracerebral hematoma Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

" or (DTICH). His research was based on four patients who suffered a head injury, in which death occurred days to weeks later from an apoplectic event.

References

1843 births 1909 deaths People from Kusel (district) Academic staff of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich German pathologists People from the Palatinate (region) {{Germany-med-bio-stub