Vincenzo Antonio Menghini (15 February 1704-27 January 1759) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

physician and scientist, who was one of the first to report the abundance of iron in red blood cells.

Biography

He was born in

Budrio Budrio ( Eastern Bolognese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, in Emilia-Romagna, Italy; it is east of Bologna. Budrio is the birthplace of Giuseppe Barilli, better known under his pseudonym of Quirico Filopanti, an I ...

to a family with a small business. His sister, Maria Orsola, would marry the prominent physician

Giovanni Giacinto Vogli Giovanni Giacinto Vogli (1697-1762) was an Italian physician and writer. Biography He was born in Budrio, but moved to Bologna; where he initially studied with the Jesuits. He then studied medicine at the University of Bologna. He wrote a book (p ...

(1697-1762). He was sent to Bologna to live and study at the Collegio Poeti. He obtained a doctorate in philosophy and medicine from the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...

in 1726, and became a doctor, working mainly in hospitals. He joined the Academy of Sciences in 1725. In 1730 he married Diamante Scarabelli. In 1736 he was appointed docent educator in Logic. The next year he became the professor of Theoretic Medicine, later of Practical Medicine at the university. In 1745,

Pope Benedict XIV Pope Benedict XIV ( la, Benedictus XIV; it, Benedetto XIV; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758.Antipope ...

established the

Accademia Benedettina The Academy of Sciences of the Institute of Bologna (''Accademia delle Scienze dell'Istituto di Bologna'') is an academic society in Bologna, Italy, that was founded in 1690 and prospered in the Age of Enlightenment. Today it is closely associated ...

, a scientific society. Menghini was one of the first members, a position that came with a stipend. He began studies into the presence of iron in the blood. Prior to Menghini,

Giuseppe Badia Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph, from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף. It is the most common name in Italy and is unique (97%) to it. The feminine form of the name is Giuse ...

(1695-1782) had suggested the presence of iron. In 1714, one of Menghini's colleagues in the Academy of Sciences,

Domenico Gusmano Maria Galeazzi Domenico is an Italian given name for males and may refer to: People * Domenico Alfani, Italian painter * Domenico Allegri, Italian composer * Domenico Alvaro, Italian mobster * Domenico Ambrogi, Italian painter * Domenico Auria, Italian archi ...

(1686-1775), attended meetings in Paris at the Academy of Sciences where they discussed the presence of iron in the ashes of incinerated vegetables. Menghini's experiments were published in 1746 in a report in the journal of the Academy of Science of Bologna about ''De ferrearum particularum sede in sanguine''. he withdrew 5 ounces of blood from a femoral vein in a dog. It was then heated into a dry powder, and tested with a magnet to see how much iron was present. He tested multiple species and organs, and found that the amount of iron was proportionate to the amount of blood in the organ. He was able to demonstrate its presence in the red globules. He began exploring the absorption of iron into the body and its therapeutic actions.Vicenzo Menghini alla scoperta del ferro nel sangue
article by Leonardo Arrighi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Menghini Vincenzo 1704 births 1759 deaths 18th-century Italian physicians 18th-century Italian scientists Academic staff of the University of Bologna