Louis Lewin (9 November 1850 - 1 December 1929) was a German

pharmacologist Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between ...

. In 1887 he received his first sample of the Peyote cactus from

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

-based physician John Raleigh Briggs (1851-1907), and later published the first methodical analysis of it, causing a variant to be named ''Anhalonium lewinii'' in his honor. Lewin was born in Tuchel,

West Prussia The Province of West Prussia (; ; ) was a province of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and from 1878 to 1919. West Prussia was established as a province of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1773, formed from Royal Prussia of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonweal ...

. He received his education at the gymnasium and the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

(

M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

1876). The two years following his graduation he spent at

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, in the laboratories of von Voit and Pettenkofer. Returning to Berlin in 1878, he became an assistant at the pharmacological institute of the university, and in 1881 he was admitted to the medical faculty as ''

Privatdozent ''Privatdozent'' (for men) or ''Privatdozentin'' (for women), abbreviated PD, P.D. or Priv.-Doz., is an academic title conferred at some European universities, especially in German-speaking countries, to someone who holds certain formal qualifi ...

''. In 1897 he was finally appointed professor.Macht DI. Louis Lewin: pharmacologist, toxicologist, medical historian. Ann Med Hist 1931; 3: 179–194. Louis Lewin's book "Die Nebenwirkungen der Arzneimittel" (1881) deals with the borderline between the pharmacological and the toxicological action of drugs with the untoward or side-effects of all kinds of medicaments. It was the first book of its kind. Another of his important books was "Phantastica" (1924), which began an era of ethnobotany that continues to the present day. Lewin mentioned in his book "Gifte und Vergiftungen" (1929) the causal connection between dental amalgam fillings and illness.Lewin L. Gifte und Vergiftungen. Berlin: Verlag von Georg Stilke, 1929. One of his famous patients were the well-known chemistry professor

Alfred Stock Alfred Stock (July 16, 1876 – August 12, 1946) was a German inorganic chemist. He did pioneering research on the hydrides of boron and silicon, coordination chemistry, mercury, and mercury poisoning. The German Chemical Society's Alfred-Stoc ...

(1876-1946), who suffered from

mercury poisoning Mercury poisoning is a type of metal poisoning due to exposure to mercury. Symptoms depend upon the type, dose, method, and duration of exposure. They may include muscle weakness, poor coordination, numbness in the hands and feet, skin rashe ...

due to occupational exposure. Lewin informed him also about mercury exposure from dental amalgams. In 1926 in an article in Zeitschrift für Angewandte Chemie (Journal of Applied Chemistry), Stock claimed that released mercury from amalgam fillings caused poisoning and demanded the consumption stopped. This triggered a sharp and intense debate in Germany.Bjørklund G
The history of dental amalgam (in Norwegian)
Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen 1989; 109: 3582-3585. Lewin died in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, where a street and the nearby underground train station were named in honour of Louis Lewin.

Drug classification

One of Lewin's most enduring tasks was to create a system of classification of psychoactive drugs and plants based on their pharmacologic action. His original categories were: * Inebriantia ( Inebriants such as

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

ether In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...

) * Excitantia (

Stimulant Stimulants (also known as central nervous system stimulants, or psychostimulants, or colloquially as uppers) are a class of drugs that increase alertness. They are used for various purposes, such as enhancing attention, motivation, cognition, ...

s such as

Khat Khat (''Catha edulis''), also known as Bushman's tea, especially in South Africa, is a flowering plant native to eastern and southeastern Africa. It has a history of cultivation originating in the Harar area (present day eastern Ethiopia) and ...

Amphetamine Amphetamine (contracted from Alpha and beta carbon, alpha-methylphenethylamine, methylphenethylamine) is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, an ...

) * Euphorica ( Euphoriants and

Narcotic The term narcotic (, from ancient Greek ναρκῶ ''narkō'', "I make numb") originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with numbing or paralyzing properties. In the United States, it has since become associated with opiates ...

s such as

Heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

) * Hypnotica (

Tranquilizer A sedative or tranquilliser is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement. They are central nervous system (CNS) depressants and interact with brain activity, causing its deceleration. Various kinds of sedatives c ...

s such as

Kava Kava or kava kava (''Piper methysticum'': Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Ancient Greek, Greek 'intoxicating') is a plant in the Piperaceae, pepper family, native to the Pacific Islands. The name ''kava'' is from Tongan language, Tongan and Marqu ...

) * Phantastica (

Hallucinogen Hallucinogens, also known as psychedelics, entheogens, or historically as psychotomimetics, are a large and diverse class of psychoactive drugs that can produce altered states of consciousness characterized by major alterations in thought, mo ...

s or

Entheogen Entheogens are psychoactive substances used in spiritual and religious contexts to induce altered states of consciousness. Hallucinogens such as the psilocybin found in so-called "magic" mushrooms have been used in sacred contexts since ancie ...

s such as

Peyote The peyote (; ''Lophophora williamsii'' ) is a small, spineless cactus which contains psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline. is a Spanish word derived from the Nahuatl (), meaning "caterpillar cocoon", from a root , "to glisten". p. ...

Ayahuasca AyahuascaPronounced as in the UK and in the US. Also occasionally known in English as ''ayaguasca'' (Spanish-derived), ''aioasca'' (Brazilian Portuguese-derived), or as ''yagé'', pronounced or . Etymologically, all forms but ''yagé'' descen ...

)

Works

Lewin was a prolific writer. Among his many essays may be mentioned: *"Über Morphium-Intoxication" -- ''On Morphium intoxication'' (in "Deutsche Zeitschrift für Praktische Medizin", 1874) *"Experimentelle Untersuchungen über die Wirkungen des Aconitin auf das Herz" -- ''Experimental analysis on the effects of

Aconitine Aconitine is an alkaloid toxin produced by various plant species belonging to the genus ''Aconitum'' (family Ranunculaceae), commonly known by the names wolfsbane and monkshood. Aconitine is notorious for its toxic properties. Structure and rea ...

on the

heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...

'' (in "Centralblatt für die Medizinische Wissenschaft", 1875) *"Über die Verwertung des Alkohols in fieberhaften Krankheiten" -- ''On the application of alcohol with feverish maladies'' (in "Deutsches Archiv für Klinische Medizin", 1876) *"Über maximale Dosen der Arzneimittel" -- ''On maximum doses of medicaments'' (in "Transactions of the International Medical Congress", 1887) *"Über allgemeine Hautvergiftung durch Petroleum" -- ''On the broad

eczema Dermatitis is a term used for different types of skin inflammation, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened ...

caused by

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...

'' (in

Rudolf Virchow Rudolf Ludwig Carl Virchow ( ; ; 13 October 18215 September 1902) was a German physician, anthropologist, pathologist, prehistorian, biologist, writer, editor, and politician. He is known as "the father of modern pathology" and as the founder o ...

's "Archiv,", 1888) *"Über Anhalonium Lewinii und andere Cacteen" -- ''On Anhalonium lewinii and other

cacti A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...

'' (in "Archiv für Experimentelle Pathologie und Pharmakologie", 1894) *"Die Behandlung der Lepra" -- ''The treatment of

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

'' (in "Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift", 1898) *"Die Untersuchungen von Blutflecken" -- ''Analysis of

hemangioma A hemangioma or haemangioma is a usually benign vascular tumor derived from blood vessel cell types. The most common form, seen in infants, is an infantile hemangioma, known colloquially as a "strawberry mark", most commonly presenting on the sk ...

'' (in "Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift", 1899) *"Die Vergiftungen in Betrieben" -- ''Intoxications at business'' (in "Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift", 1890) Lewin is also the author of the following books: *"Die Nebenwirkungen der Arzneimittellehre" -- '' Adverse reactions of

pharmacology Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur betwee ...

'' (Berlin, 1881) *"Die Arzneimittel und ihre Dosierung : zum Gebrauche für Vorlesungen und die ärztliche Praxis" . Grosser, Berlin 188
Digital edition
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University and State Library Düsseldorf The University and State Library Düsseldorf (, abbreviated ULB Düsseldorf) is a central service institution of Heinrich Heine University. Along with Bonn and Münster, it is also one of the three State Libraries of North Rhine-Westphalia. ...

*"Lehrbuch der Toxikologie : für Aerzte, Studirende und Apotheker ; mit 8 Holzschnitten u. 1 Taf." . Urban & Schwarzenberg, Wien .a.188
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*"Über Piper Methysticum (Kawa Kawa)" -- ''On Piper methysticum'' (Berlin, 1886) *"Über Areca Catechu, Chavica Betle, und das Betelkauen" -- ''On

Areca catechu ''Areca catechu'' is a species of palm native to the Philippines cultivated for areca nuts. It was carried widely through the tropics by the Austronesian migrations and trade since at least 1500 BCE due to its use in betel nut chewing. ...

, Piper betle and the chewing of Betel leaves'' (Stuttgart, 1889)
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) *"Die Fruchtabtreibung durch Gifte und andere Mittel" -- ''

Abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

poison A poison is any chemical substance that is harmful or lethal to living organisms. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figurati ...

s and other remedies'' (Berlin) *"Die Pfeilgifte : historische und experimentelle Untersuchungen" . Reimer, Berlin 189
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*"Lehrbuch der Toxikologie" . Urban & Schwarzenberg, Wien .a.2., vollst. neubearb. Aufl. 189
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*"Die Gifte in der Weltgeschichte : toxikologische, allgemeinverständliche Untersuchungen der historischen Quellen" . Springer, Berlin 192
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by the

References

External links

Louis Lewin on the Jewish Encyclopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Louis 1850 births 1929 deaths People from Tuchola People from West Prussia 19th-century Prussian people Scientists from Berlin 19th-century German Jews German pharmacologists Psychedelic drug researchers