Robert Thomson Leiper (17 April 1881 – 21 May 1969) FRS CMG was a British

parasitologist Parasitology is the study of parasites, their hosts, and the relationship between them. As a biological discipline, the scope of parasitology is not determined by the organism or environment in question but by their way of life. This means it f ...

and

helminthologist Helminthology is the study of parasitic worms (helminths). The field studies the Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy of helminths and their effects on their host (biology), hosts. The origin of the first compound of the word is the Greek ''wikt:ἕλ� ...

Early life and education

Leiper was born on 17 April 1881 in Witch Road,

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...

, Scotland; the eldest of three children of John Leiper (died 1895), tailor, and his wife, Jessie Aird. The family moved to England shortly after he was born. He was educated at

Warwick School Warwick School is a selective, independent day and boarding school in Warwick, England in the public school tradition. Known until about 1900 as King's School, Warwick, it is believed to have been founded by Æthelflæd of Mercia in 914 AD ...

, spending time at the Warwick Technical College to further his studies in science. He spent a year at

Mason Science College Mason Science College was a university college in Birmingham, England, and a predecessor college of Birmingham University. Founded in 1875 by industrialist and philanthropist Sir Josiah Mason, the college was incorporated into the University o ...

(which later became the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

), matriculating in physics, mathematics, English and Latin. He then entered the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

to study medicine, at which he excelled, winning awards such as the John Hunter Medal and the Senior Arnott Prize in the field; graduating in 1904.

Career

From an early age Leiper was devoted to

helminthology Helminthology is the study of parasitic worms (helminths). The field studies the taxonomy of helminths and their effects on their hosts. The origin of the first compound of the word is the Greek '' ἕλμινς'' - helmins, meaning "worm". In ...

, the study of parasitic flatworms; while still an undergraduate, at the age of 21, he discovered an undocumented

turbellarian The Turbellaria are one of the traditional sub-divisions of the phylum Platyhelminthes (flatworms), and include all the sub-groups that are not exclusively parasitic. There are about 4,500 species, which range from to large freshwater forms more ...

worm in the

Spatangoida The heart urchins or Spatangoida are an order of sea urchins. Their body is a somewhat elongated oval in form, and is distinguished by the mouth being placed towards one end of the animal, and the anus towards the other. As a result, heart urc ...

sea urchin. This discovery lead to the publication of his first paper in ''

Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...

'' magazine. He later, in 1923, he founded the ''

Journal of Helminthology The ''Journal of Helminthology'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal established in 1923. It covers all aspects of pure and applied helminthology, particularly those helminth parasites of environmental health, medical, or veterinary ...

''. In that same year on 3 May he was made a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

. He was appointed to the

Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

in 1936,

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

in 1941, and received an LLD degree from Glasgow University in 1955. Leiper was the first professor of helminthology at the University of London and director of the helminthology course at the

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a public research university in Bloomsbury, central London, and a member institution of the University of London that specialises in public health and tropical medicine. The inst ...

. Leiper worked at LSHTM from 1905 until his retirement in 1947, during his time there he studied under Professor

Arthur Looss Arthur Looss (16 March 1861 – 4 May 1923) was a German zoologist and parasitologist. Looss was born in 1861 in Chemnitz, and was educated both there and in Łódź, Poland. Thereafter, he studied at the University of Leipzig, where he received ...

at the University of Cairo and took part in the Egyptian Government's helminthological survey in Uganda.

Personal life

In 1908, Leiper married Ceinwen Saron (died 1966), a dentist; they had one son and two daughters.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leiper, Robert Thomson 1881 births 1969 deaths Scottish parasitologists Fellows of the Royal Society Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George People from Kilmarnock Alumni of the University of Glasgow People educated at Warwick School Alumni of the University of Birmingham