Richard Altmann (12 March 1852 – 8 December 1900) was a German

pathologist Pathology is the study of disease. 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 used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

and histologist from Deutsch Eylau in the Province of Prussia. Altmann studied medicine in

Greifswald Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin and Neubrandenburg. In 2021 it surpa ...

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

Marburg Marburg (; ) is a college town, university town in the States of Germany, German federal state () of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf Districts of Germany, district (). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has ...

, and

Giessen Giessen, spelled in German (), is a town in the Germany, German States of Germany, state () of Hesse, capital of both the Giessen (district), district of Giessen and the Giessen (region), administrative region of Giessen. The population is appro ...

, obtaining a doctorate at the

University of Giessen University of Giessen, official name Justus Liebig University Giessen (), is a large public research university in Giessen, Hesse, Germany. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in the German-speaking world. It is named afte ...

in 1877. He then worked as a prosector at

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, and in 1887 became an

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

professor (extraordinary). He died in Hubertusburg in 1900 from a nervous disorder. He improved fixation methods, for instance, his solution of potassium dichromate and

osmium tetroxide Osmium tetroxide (also osmium(VIII) oxide) is the chemical compound with the formula OsO4. The compound is noteworthy for its many uses, despite its toxicity and the rarity of osmium. It also has a number of unusual properties, one being that the ...

.William Bechtel, ''Discovering Cell Mechanisms: The Creation of Modern Cell Biology'' (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009)
pp 80–83
Using that along with a new staining technique of applying acid-

fuchsin Fuchsine (sometimes spelled fuchsin) or rosaniline hydrochloride is a magenta dye with chemical formula C20H19N3·HCl.

contrasted by

picric acid Picric acid is an organic compound with the formula (O2N)3C6H2OH. Its IUPAC name is 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP). The name "picric" comes from (''pikros''), meaning "bitter", due to its bitter taste. It is one of the most acidic phenols. Like ot ...

amid delicate heating, he observed filaments in the nearly all cell types, developed from granules.Erik Nordenskiöld,
The History of Biology
' (New York: Knopf, 1935)
pp 538–39
He named the granules "bioblasts", and explained them as the elementary living units, having

metabolic Metabolism (, from ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run cellular processes; the ...

and genetic autonomy, in his 1890 book "''Die Elementarorganismen''" ("The Elementary Organism"). His explanation drew much skepticism and harsh criticism. Altmann's granules are now believed to be

mitochondria A mitochondrion () is an organelle found in the cells of most eukaryotes, such as animals, plants and fungi. Mitochondria have a double membrane structure and use aerobic respiration to generate adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is us ...

. He is credited with coining the term "

nucleic acid Nucleic acids are large biomolecules that are crucial in all cells and viruses. They are composed of nucleotides, which are the monomer components: a pentose, 5-carbon sugar, a phosphate group and a nitrogenous base. The two main classes of nuclei ...

" in 1889, replacing

Friedrich Miescher Johannes Friedrich Miescher (13 August 1844 – 26 August 1895) was a Swiss physician and biologist. He was the first scientist to isolate nucleic acid in 1869. Miescher also identified protamine and made several other discoveries. Miescher had ...

's term "nuclein" when it was demonstrated that nuclein was acidic.

Books

Notes

References

''Richard Altmann''
@ Who Named It
Mitochondrial Medicine Center
The Mitochondrion {{DEFAULTSORT:Altmann, Richard 1852 births 1900 deaths People from Iława Scientists from the Kingdom of Prussia German anatomists German pathologists German histologists History of genetics People from the Province of Prussia University of Greifswald alumni University of Königsberg alumni University of Marburg alumni University of Giessen alumni Academic staff of Leipzig University