Hermann Adolf Alexander Schmidt ( – ) was a
Baltic German physiologist
Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical a ...
from what was then the
Governorate of Livonia in the
Russian Empire. He was born on the island of Moon, which is today known by its Estonian name
Muhu, in present-day
Estonia.
In 1858, he received his medical doctorate from the
University of Dorpat, and later was an assistant to
Felix Hoppe-Seyler (1825-1895) in
Berlin, and to
Carl Ludwig (1816-1895) in
Leipzig. In 1869 he succeeded
Friedrich Bidder
Georg Friedrich Karl Heinrich Bidder ( – ) was a Baltic German physiologist and anatomist from what was then the Governorate of Livonia in the Russian Empire.
In 1834 he received his doctorate from the University of Dorpat, where he became a ...
(1810-1894) as professor of physiology at Dorpat, where he remained for the rest of his life. From 1885 to 1889 he served as
university rector
A rector (Latin for 'ruler') is a senior official in an educational institution, and can refer to an official in either a university or a secondary school. Outside the English-speaking world the rector is often the most senior official in a un ...
.
Schmidt is remembered for his research involving the process of
blood coagulation
Coagulation, also known as clotting, is the process by which blood changes from a liquid to a gel, forming a blood clot. It potentially results in hemostasis, the cessation of blood loss from a damaged vessel, followed by repair. The mechanism o ...
by demonstrating that the transformation of
fibrinogen into
fibrin
Fibrin (also called Factor Ia) is a fibrous, non-globular protein involved in the clotting of blood. It is formed by the action of the protease thrombin on fibrinogen, which causes it to polymerize. The polymerized fibrin, together with platele ...
was the result of an
enzymatic process. He named the hypothetical enzyme "
thrombin", and he called its precursor "
prothrombin". Schmidt is credited for providing a foundation for the creation of anti-coagulation systems and towards the development of
blood transfusion.
Selected works
* ''Weiteres über den Faserstoff und die Ursachen seiner Gerinnung'', 1862 – More information involving "faserstoff" and the causes of its coagulation.
* ''Ueber Ozon im Blut'', 1862. (habilitation thesis for
privat-docent). 1862 – On
ozone in the blood.
* ''Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Milch'', 1874 – Contributions to the understanding of milk.
* ''Die Lehre von den fermentativen Gerinnungserscheinungen in den eiweissartigen thierischen Körperflüssigkeiten'', 1876. The doctrine of the fermentative coagulation phenomena in albuminous animal body fluids.
* ''Zur Blutlehre''. Leipzig, F. C. W. Vogel, 1892 – Lessons on blood.
Bibliography of Schmidt
@ Who Named It
References
External links
Hemophilia Federation
The Coagulation Process
1831 births
1894 deaths
People from Muhu Parish
People from the Governorate of Livonia
Baltic-German people
German physiologists
University of Tartu faculty
Rectors of the University of Tartu
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