Joseph-Henri Léveillé (28 May 1796 – 3 February 1870) was a French
physician
A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...
and
mycologist
Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their taxonomy, genetics, biochemical properties, and use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, food, traditional medicine, as well as entheogens, poison, and ...
who was a native of
Crux-la-Ville, in the department of
Nièvre
Nièvre () is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, central-east France. Named after the river Nièvre, it had a population of 204,452 in 2019.[mycology
Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungus, fungi, including their Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, genetics, biochemistry, biochemical properties, and ethnomycology, use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, Edible ...]
at the
University of Paris
The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...
, and in 1824 received his medical doctorate.
In his 1837 paper ''Sur le hymenium des champignons'', he provided an early, comprehensive description of the
basidium
A basidium (: basidia) is a microscopic spore-producing structure found on the hymenophore of reproductive bodies of basidiomycete fungi. The presence of basidia is one of the main characteristic features of the group. These bodies are also ...
and
cystidium
A cystidium (: cystidia) is a relatively large cell found on the sporocarp of a basidiomycete (for example, on the surface of a mushroom
A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing Sporocarp (fungi), fruiting body of a fungus, t ...
of
basidiomycete
Basidiomycota () is one of two large divisions that, together with the Ascomycota, constitute the subkingdom Dikarya (often referred to as the "higher fungi") within the kingdom Fungi. Members are known as basidiomycetes. More specifically, Basid ...
fungi
A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...
, and was able to establish the role that the basidium played in
spore
In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual reproduction, sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for biological dispersal, dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores fo ...
production. Also, he made important findings in regard to the true nature of individual members of the so-called genus "
Sclerotium
A sclerotium (; : sclerotia () is a compact mass of hardened fungal mycelium containing food reserves. One role of sclerotia is to survive environmental extremes. In some higher fungi such as ergot, sclerotia become detached and remain dormant u ...
".
Selected writings
* ''Sur le hymenium des champignons'' (1837)
* ''Memoire sur le genre Sclerotium'' (1843)
* ''Considérations mycologiques, suivies d'une nouvelle classification des champignons'' (1846)
* ''Iconographie des Champignons de Paulet'' (1855)
Honours
He is honoured in the naming of ''
Leveillella'' in 1915, which is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
fungi
A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...
in the
Asterinaceae family.
See also
*
:Taxa named by Joseph-Henri Léveillé
References
External links
*
The Mushroom Journal(biographical information)
Comparative morphology and biology of the fungi mycetozoa and bacteriaby Anton Bary, Isaac Bayley Balfour, Henry Edward Fowler Garnsey
HUH- Index of Botanists
French mycologists
1796 births
1870 deaths
People from Nièvre
University of Paris alumni
{{Mycologist-stub