Vilém Dušan Lambl (5 December 1824 in Letiny – 12 February 1895) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

physician. He authored his medical publications, which were in German, as Wilhelm Lambl. Lambl had a keen interest in the field of

linguistics Linguistics is the science, scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure ...

, particularly

Slavic languages The Slavic languages, also known as the Slavonic languages, are Indo-European languages spoken primarily by the Slavic peoples and their descendants. They are thought to descend from a proto-language called Proto-Slavic, spoken during the ...

. After earning his degree in medicine from the University of Prague, he traveled extensively in Bosnia-Herzegovina,

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

, Dalmatia, and

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

, conducting research on South

and culture. Following his return to

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

, he worked both at Josef von Löschner's children's hospital and as a lecturer at the University of Praque until 1860, when he accepted a position at

Kharkiv University The Kharkiv University or Karazin University ( uk, Каразінський університет), or officially V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University ( uk, Харківський національний університет імені ...

. In 1871, he became a professor at the University of

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

. He is remembered for his description of an intestinal protozoan

parasite Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...

that was initially discovered by

Anton van Leeuwenhoek Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek ( ; ; 24 October 1632 – 26 August 1723) was a Dutch microbiologist and microscopist in the Golden Age of Dutch science and technology. A largely self-taught man in science, he is commonly known as " the ...

(1632–1723), and is a cause of gastroenteritis. Lambl called the protozoan ''Cercomonas intestinalis''. In 1888 the name was changed to ''Lamblia intestinalis'' by

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and d ...

Raphael Anatole Émile Blanchard (1819–1900). In 1915 the species was renamed to ''

Giardia lamblia ''Giardia duodenalis'', also known as ''Giardia intestinalis'' and ''Giardia lamblia'', is a flagellated parasitic microorganism of the genus '' Giardia'' that colonizes the small intestine, causing a diarrheal condition known as giardiasis. ...

'' by American zoologist

Charles Wardell Stiles Charles Wardell Stiles (May 15, 1867 – January 24, 1941) was an American parasitologist born in Spring Valley, New York. He was notable for working on a campaign against hookworm infestation in the American South, where it had been found to cau ...

(1867–1941) in honor of Lambl and French

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 ...

Alfred Mathieu Giard Alfred Mathieu Giard (8 August 1846 – 8 August 1908) was a French zoologist born in Valenciennes. Biography In 1867 he began his studies of natural sciences at the École Normale Supérieure, followed by work as ''préparateur de zoologie'' a ...

(1846–1908). Today the illness caused by the parasite is called either " lambliasis" or "

giardiasis Giardiasis is a parasitic disease caused by ''Giardia duodenalis'' (also known as ''G. lamblia'' and ''G. intestinalis''). Infected individuals who experience symptoms (about 10% have no symptoms) may have diarrhea, abdominal pain, and weight los ...

". With Löschner, he published "''Aus dem Franz Josef-Kinder-Spitale in Prag''", Part one: "''Beobachtungen und Studien aus dem Gebiete der pathologischen Anatomie und Histologie''" (1860), ("From the Franz-Josefs-Kinder-Spital in Prague, Observations and studies from the fields of

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 o ...

and

histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology which studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at larger structures vi ...

"). Lambl excrescences, which he described in a publication from 1856, are still important today as an anatomic feature essential to physiologic valvular coaptation; especially in the aortic valve.

Eponym named after Lambl

* Lambl's excrescences: Small fibrin deposits on the

aortic valve The aortic valve is a valve in the heart of humans and most other animals, located between the left ventricle and the aorta. It is one of the four valves of the heart and one of the two semilunar valves, the other being the pulmonary valve. Th ...

. * Lambl's excrescences: Foot of a gecko guiding valvular coaptation.

References

''Vilem Dusan Lambl''
@

Who Named It ''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograp ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lambl, Wilhelm 1824 births 1895 deaths 19th-century Czech physicians 19th-century biologists Czech microbiologists Czech expatriates in Ukraine People from Plzeň-South District