Jean-Pierre Nuel (February 27, 1847 – August 21, 1920) was a

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

ish- Belgian

ophthalmologist Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...

and

physiologist Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out chemical and ...

who was a native of

Tétange Tétange (, ) is a town in the commune of Kayl, in south-western Luxembourg. , the town has a population of 4,033. Schlager singer Camillo Felgen Camillo Jean Nicolas Felgen (17 November 1920 – 16 July 2005) was a Luxembourgish singer, lyri ...

. In 1870 he earned his doctorate from the

University of Ghent Ghent University (, abbreviated as UGent) is a Public university, public research university located in Ghent, in the East Flanders province of Belgium. Located in Flanders, Ghent University is the second largest Belgian university, consisting o ...

, and became licensed to practice

surgery Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery s ...

and

gynecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see American and British English spelling differences) is the area of medicine concerned with conditions affecting the Female reproductive system, female reproductive system. It is often paired with the field of obste ...

in Luxembourg. Subsequently, he opened a private practice in the town of Eich (today part of

Luxembourg City Luxembourg (; ; ), also known as Luxembourg City ( or ; ; or ), is the capital city of Luxembourg and the Communes of Luxembourg, country's most populous commune. Standing at the confluence of the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers in southern Luxe ...

) and furthered his education in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

and

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

. During this time period, his interest shifted to

ophthalmology Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...

, and he was particularly inspired by the work of

Franciscus Donders Franciscus (Franz) Cornelius Donders FRS FRSE (27 May 1818 – 24 March 1889) was a Dutch ophthalmologist. During his career, he was a professor of physiology in Utrecht, and was internationally regarded as an authority on eye diseases, directin ...

(1818–1889) at Utrecht. In 1877 Nuel became a professor of ophthalmology in

Louvain Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the sub-municipalities of ...

, and later a professor of physiology in Ghent (1880). In 1885 he attained the chair of ophthalmology and physiology of sensory organs at

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

. In the field of

otology Otology is a branch of medicine which studies normal, pathological anatomy and physiology of the ear (hearing). Otology also studies vestibular sensory systems, related structures and functions, as well as their diseases, diagnosis and trea ...

, he is credited with the discovery of the eponymous "space of Nuel", which is an interval between the outer rods of Corti and the adjacent hair cells.
(Henry Gray (1825–1861). Anatomy of the Human Body. 1918)

Selected writings

* ''Beitrag zur Kenntniss der Säugethierschnecke'', (1872). * ''Recherches microscopiques sur l ’anatomie du limaçon des mammifères'', (1878). * ''La Vision'' edition by Octave Doin, Paris (1904)

References

Sketches of Otohistory
(biographical information) 1847 births 1920 deaths People from Kayl Luxembourgian ophthalmologists Academic staff of Ghent University {{Luxembourg-bio-stub