John Reid (9 April 1809 – 30 July 1849) was a Scottish physician and academic, known as an anatomist and physiologist.

Life

The sixth child of Henry Reid, a farmer, he was born at

Bathgate Bathgate ( or , ) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, west of Livingston, Scotland, Livingston and adjacent to the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway. Nearby towns are Linlithgow, Livingston, and West Calder. A number of villages fall under ...

West Lothian West Lothian (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, bordering (in a clockwise direction) the City of Edinburgh council area, Scottish Borders, South Lanarkshire, North Lanarkshire and Falkirk (council area), Falkirk. The modern counci ...

, on 9 April 1809. He studied medicine at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, taking his diploma on 12 July 1830, and being admitted a fellow of the

Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that set the specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was established by royal charter i ...

, on 4 October 1836. Reid was appointed assistant physician in the clinical wards of Edinburgh Infirmary in 1830, and in 1831 went to Paris to study. Returning in 1832, he was sent, with three other Edinburgh physicians, to

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

during the outbreak of cholera there, remaining for several months there. He lived nearby at 8 Hill Place. Reid described the function of the

glossopharyngeal nerve The glossopharyngeal nerve (), also known as the ninth cranial nerve, cranial nerve IX, or simply CN IX, is a cranial nerve that exits the brainstem from the sides of the upper Medulla oblongata, medulla, just anterior (closer to the nose) to t ...

and

vagus nerve The vagus nerve, also known as the tenth cranial nerve (CN X), plays a crucial role in the autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for regulating involuntary functions within the human body. This nerve carries both sensory and motor fibe ...

. He also proved the heart had a double innervation through the

vagus The vagus nerve, also known as the tenth cranial nerve (CN X), plays a crucial role in the autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for regulating involuntary functions within the human body. This nerve carries both sensory and motor fiber ...

and sympathetic nerves. Reid subsequently became a demonstrator in the school of anatomy established at Old Surgeons' Hall, Edinburgh, and published medical essays. In 1836 he was appointed lecturer on physiology at the Edinburgh Extra-Academical Medical School, and in 1838 pathologist to the Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh. On the death of Dr. Robert Briggs in 1841, Reid was appointed to the Chandos chair of anatomy in the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

. There he began a course of lectures on comparative anatomy and physiology, in addition to the regular work of the professorship. He also conducted research into marine fauna of the

Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...

coast, and in 1848 published a collection of papers on the subject, entitled ''Physiological, Anatomical, and Pathological Researches''. After a long illness, Reid died from cancer of the tongue in 1849.Harkness, Robert (2011
John Reid M.D. Chandos Professor of Anatomy & Medicine – St Andrews
Bathgate Historic Conservation Society

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Reid, John 1809 births 1849 deaths 19th-century Scottish medical doctors Scottish anatomists Scottish physiologists Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh