Simeon Burt Wolbach (July 3, 1880 – March 19, 1954) was an American pathologist, researcher, teacher, and journal editor who elucidated the infection vectors for

Rocky Mountain spotted fever Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is a bacterial disease spread by ticks. It typically begins with a fever and headache, which is followed a few days later with the development of a rash. The rash is generally Petechial rash, made up of small s ...

and

epidemic typhus Epidemic typhus, also known as louse-borne typhus, is a form of typhus so named because the disease often causes epidemics following wars and natural disasters where civil life is disrupted. Epidemic typhus is spread to people through contact wit ...

. He was president of the

American Association of Pathologists and Bacteriologists The American Association of Pathologists and Bacteriologists (AAPB) was an American national professional association established in 1901, devoted to fundamental science and academic medicine as distinct from clinical medicine. In 1976, they joined ...

and the

American Society for Experimental Pathology American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

Early life

Wolbach was born in 1880 in

Grand Island, Nebraska Grand Island is a city in and the county seat of Hall County, Nebraska, Hall County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 53,131 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Nebraska, 4th most populous ...

. He was the son of banker Samuel N. Wolbach and Rosa Stein. He was raised Jewish. Wolbach attended the

Lawrence Scientific School The Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) is the engineering education, engineering school within Harvard University's Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, offering degrees in eng ...

at Harvard for his undergraduate degree. He received an M.D. from

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

in 1903. Wolbach's early research was into the effects of radiation on skin. Later fieldwork in Africa got him interested in tropical

parasitology Parasitology is the study of parasites, their host (biology), hosts, and the relationship between them. As a List of biology disciplines, biological discipline, the scope of parasitology is not determined by the organism or environment in questio ...

. From 1903 to 1905, he completed his postgraduate studies in pathology at the

Boston City Hospital The Boston City Hospital (1864–1996), in Boston, Massachusetts, was a public hospital located in the South End. It was "intended for the use and comfort of poor patients, to whom medical care will be provided at the expense of the city, and ...

under

Frank Burr Mallory Frank Burr Mallory (November 12, 1862 – September 27, 1941) was an American pathologist at the Boston City Hospital and professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School, after whom the Mallory body is named. The Pathology Department at B ...

and William T. Councilman.

Career

In 1905, Wolbach returned to Harvard Medical School and worked as a pathology assistant under Councilman. At the same time, he was the pathologist at the

Boston Lying-In Hospital Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH or The Brigham) is a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest hospital in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Along with Massachusetts General Hospital, it is one of the two f ...

and the

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

chronic care hospital. In 1908, he became the director of Bender Hygienic Laboratory (today part of St. Peter's Healthcare) in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

and an adjunct professor and department head of pathology and

bacteriology Bacteriology is the branch and specialty of biology that studies the Morphology (biology), morphology, ecology, genetics and biochemistry of bacteria as well as many other aspects related to them. This subdivision of microbiology involves the iden ...

Albany Medical College Albany Medical College (AMC) is a Private university, private medical school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1839 by Alden March and James H. Armsby and is one of the oldest medical schools in the nation. The college is part of the Albany Me ...

. He spent 1909 at

Montreal General Hospital The Montreal General Hospital (MGH) () is a hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada established in the years 1818–1820. The hospital received its charter in 1823. It is currently part of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) and is located ...

and

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

. Working with McGill parasitologist John L. Todd, he carried uninfected lice (feeding them on their persons) to Poland in 1920 to demonstrate that lice transmit

Rickettsia prowazekii ''Rickettsia prowazekii'' is a species of gram-negative, obligate intracellular parasitic, aerobic bacilliform bacteria of class Alphaproteobacteria that is the etiologic agent of epidemic typhus, transmitted in the feces of lice. In North Am ...

, the organism which causes

. For this work, he received the rank of Commander in the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta (, ) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on alien (law), foreigners for outstanding achievements in ...

. In 1910, he returned to Harvard Medical School's Department of Bacteriology. In 1914, he became an associate professor of pathology and bacteriology there. In 1922, he became the head of pathology, occupying the chair as Shattuck Professor of Pathological Anatomy. From 1922 to 1947, he was at

Peter Bent Brigham Hospital Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH or The Brigham) is a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest hospital in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Along with Massachusetts General Hospital, it is one of the two ...

and Children's Hospital of Boston as chief of pathology. Wolbach focused on childhood development and vitamin deficiencies. With J. M. Coppoletta at Brigham and Children's Hospitals, he developed tables of weights of vital organs for different ages and body lengths that became a definitive reference for

pediatric pathology Pediatric pathology is the sub-specialty of surgical pathology which deals with the diagnosis and characterization of neoplastic and non-neoplastic diseases of children. The duties of pediatric pathologists can be divided into two categories: the ...

. In 1938, Wolbach was elected to the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

Personal life

Wolbach married Anna F. Wellington in 1914 and had three children. He died in

Sudbury, Massachusetts Sudbury is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 18,934. The town, located in Greater Boston's MetroWest region, has a colonial history. History Incorporated in 1639, the boundar ...

on March 19, 1954.

Selected publications

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References

External links