Hans Horst Meyer
Encyclopedia
Hans Horst Meyer was a German pharmacologist. He studied medicine and did research in pharmacology. The Meyer-Overton hypothesis on the mode of action on general anaesthetic
s is partially named after him. He also discovered the importance of glucuronic acid
as a reaction partner for drugs, and the mode of action of tetanus
toxin on the body.
(now Chernyakhovsk
, Russia). He studied medicine in Königsberg
, Leipzig
, Berlin
and again in Königsberg. After his promotion to Doctor of medicine
in Königsberg he worked with Oswald Schmiedeberg
, one of the founders of pharmacology
as an independent scientific discipline, in Strasbourg
. In 1881 he was appointed to the Chair of Pharmacology in Dorpat (now Tartu
, Estonia
). Also in 1881, he married Doris née Boehm. Together they had three sons, Kurt Heinrich (1883–1952), Arthur Woldemar (1885–1933) and Friedrich Horst (1889–1894).
Between 1884 and 1904 Meyer occupied the Chair of Pharmacology in Marburg
where he worked with Emil Adolf von Behring
and Otto Loewi
, winner of the 1936 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine
. In 1904, Meyer moved to Vienna, and Loewi joined him until he was appointed to the Chair of Pharmacology in Graz
. Ernst Peter Pick joined the department in 1911. Pick would later succeed Meyer as Chair. During Meyer's time in Vienna, he worked with three scientists who would eventually win the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. George Hoyt Whipple won the award in 1934, Corneille Heymans
won in 1938 and Carl Ferdinand Cori
captured the Nobel prize in 1947. Meyer retired in 1924 and remained in Vienna.
Meyer's later life was impacted by National Socialism. His second son, Arthur was a well-known surgeon in Berlin who was one of the first to successfully carry out surgical embolectomy
in massive pulmonary embolism
. On November 14, 1933, Arthur shot his wife and then committed suicide
. Arthur's wife was Jewish, and allegations were made that he was also Jewish. In 1938, Meyer and Pick were expelled from the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina as "non-Aryan
". After this, Pick emigrated to the United States. Meyer died the same year in Vienna..
Meyer’s eldest son, Kurt Heinrich, was research director of BASF
from 1920 to 1929 later served as a professor of chemistry of the University of Geneva
. He supervised the doctoral thesis of Edmond Henri Fischer, who with Edwin Gerhard Krebs won the Nobel prize in physiology and medicine in 1992.
as the most important reaction partner of drugs (in his case, a metabolite of camphor
). He also discovered a relationship between the lipophilicity of general anaesthetics and their potency. Meyer concluded that lipophilicity was the essential factor in the effectiveness of an anaesthetic. These findings were summarized in three papers in Archiv für experimentelle Pathologie und Pharmakologie by Meyer and his coworker Fritz Baum, published in 1899. A year later, Charles Ernest Overton (1865–1933) independently came to the same conclusion. This correlation became known as the Meyer-Overton hypothesis. It has been called the most influential correlation in anaesthesia Meyer also discovered that tetanus toxin acts on the central nervous system and is transported there from the periphery via the motor neuron
s. This explains why the incubation time always takes several hours, and why therapy with antibodies
is of limited value.
Meyer and Rudolf Gottlieb wrote a major German pharmacology textbook that was published in nine editions between 1910 and 1936. he also played an important role in the development and implementation of drug regulation in Austria.
, was also dedicated to Meyer on his 70th birthday. These items and other memorabilia relating to Meyer's career are in possession of the History Collections of the Duke University Medical Center Library.
General anaesthetic
A general anaesthetic is a drug that brings about a reversible loss of consciousness. These drugs are generally administered by an anaesthesia provider to induce or maintain general anaesthesia to facilitate surgery...
s is partially named after him. He also discovered the importance of glucuronic acid
Glucuronic acid
Glucuronic acid is a carboxylic acid. Its structure is similar to that of glucose. However, glucuronic acid's sixth carbon is oxidized to a carboxylic acid...
as a reaction partner for drugs, and the mode of action of tetanus
Tetanus
Tetanus is a medical condition characterized by a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. The primary symptoms are caused by tetanospasmin, a neurotoxin produced by the Gram-positive, rod-shaped, obligate anaerobic bacterium Clostridium tetani...
toxin on the body.
Life
Meyer was born in Insterburg, East PrussiaEast Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
(now Chernyakhovsk
Chernyakhovsk
Chernyakhovsk is a town and the administrative center of Chernyakhovsky District of Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Instruch and the Angrapa Rivers, forming the Pregolya...
, Russia). He studied medicine in Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
, Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and again in Königsberg. After his promotion to Doctor of medicine
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
in Königsberg he worked with Oswald Schmiedeberg
Oswald Schmiedeberg
Oswald Schmiedeberg was a Baltic German pharmacologist.Schmiedeberg was born at Gut Laidsen in the Imperial Russian province of Courland. In 1866 he earned his medical doctorate from the University of Dorpat with a thesis concerning the measurement of chloroform in blood. Afterwards he was an...
, one of the founders of pharmacology
Pharmacology
Pharmacology is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function...
as an independent scientific discipline, in Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
. In 1881 he was appointed to the Chair of Pharmacology in Dorpat (now Tartu
Tartu
Tartu is the second largest city of Estonia. In contrast to Estonia's political and financial capital Tallinn, Tartu is often considered the intellectual and cultural hub, especially since it is home to Estonia's oldest and most renowned university. Situated 186 km southeast of Tallinn, the...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
). Also in 1881, he married Doris née Boehm. Together they had three sons, Kurt Heinrich (1883–1952), Arthur Woldemar (1885–1933) and Friedrich Horst (1889–1894).
Between 1884 and 1904 Meyer occupied the Chair of Pharmacology in Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
where he worked with Emil Adolf von Behring
Emil Adolf von Behring
Emil Adolf von Behring was a German physiologist who received the 1901 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, the first one so awarded.-Biography:...
and Otto Loewi
Otto Loewi
Otto Loewi was a German born pharmacologist whose discovery of acetylcholine helped enhance medical therapy. The discovery earned for him the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1936 which he shared with Sir Henry Dale, whom he met in 1902 when spending some months in Ernest Starling's...
, winner of the 1936 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
. In 1904, Meyer moved to Vienna, and Loewi joined him until he was appointed to the Chair of Pharmacology in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
. Ernst Peter Pick joined the department in 1911. Pick would later succeed Meyer as Chair. During Meyer's time in Vienna, he worked with three scientists who would eventually win the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. George Hoyt Whipple won the award in 1934, Corneille Heymans
Corneille Heymans
Corneille Jean François Heymans was a Flemish physiologist. He studied at the prestigious Jesuit College of Sainte Barbe after which he proceeded to Ghent University, where he obtained a doctor's degree in 1920.After graduation Heymans worked at the Collège de France Corneille Jean François...
won in 1938 and Carl Ferdinand Cori
Carl Ferdinand Cori
Carl Ferdinand Cori was a Czech biochemist and pharmacologist born in Prague who, together with his wife Gerty Cori and Argentine physiologist Bernardo Houssay, received a Nobel Prize in 1947 for their discovery of how glycogen – a derivative of glucose – is broken down and...
captured the Nobel prize in 1947. Meyer retired in 1924 and remained in Vienna.
Meyer's later life was impacted by National Socialism. His second son, Arthur was a well-known surgeon in Berlin who was one of the first to successfully carry out surgical embolectomy
Embolectomy
Embolectomy is the emergency surgical removal of emboli which are blocking blood circulation. It usually involves removal of thrombi , and is then referred to as thrombectomy. Embolectomy is an emergency procedure often as the last resort because permanent occlusion of a significant blood flow to...
in massive pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism is a blockage of the main artery of the lung or one of its branches by a substance that has travelled from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream . Usually this is due to embolism of a thrombus from the deep veins in the legs, a process termed venous thromboembolism...
. On November 14, 1933, Arthur shot his wife and then committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
. Arthur's wife was Jewish, and allegations were made that he was also Jewish. In 1938, Meyer and Pick were expelled from the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina as "non-Aryan
Aryan race
The Aryan race is a concept historically influential in Western culture in the period of the late 19th century and early 20th century. It derives from the idea that the original speakers of the Indo-European languages and their descendants up to the present day constitute a distinctive race or...
". After this, Pick emigrated to the United States. Meyer died the same year in Vienna..
Meyer’s eldest son, Kurt Heinrich, was research director of BASF
BASF
BASF SE is the largest chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Germany. BASF originally stood for Badische Anilin- und Soda-Fabrik . Today, the four letters are a registered trademark and the company is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Zurich Stock...
from 1920 to 1929 later served as a professor of chemistry of the University of Geneva
University of Geneva
The University of Geneva is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland.It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin, as a theological seminary and law school. It remained focused on theology until the 17th century, when it became a center for Enlightenment scholarship. In 1873, it...
. He supervised the doctoral thesis of Edmond Henri Fischer, who with Edwin Gerhard Krebs won the Nobel prize in physiology and medicine in 1992.
Scientific achievements
Meyer is best remembered for three discoveries. With Schmiedeberg, he discovered glucuronic acidGlucuronic acid
Glucuronic acid is a carboxylic acid. Its structure is similar to that of glucose. However, glucuronic acid's sixth carbon is oxidized to a carboxylic acid...
as the most important reaction partner of drugs (in his case, a metabolite of camphor
Camphor
Camphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula C10H16O. It is found in wood of the camphor laurel , a large evergreen tree found in Asia and also of Dryobalanops aromatica, a giant of the Bornean forests...
). He also discovered a relationship between the lipophilicity of general anaesthetics and their potency. Meyer concluded that lipophilicity was the essential factor in the effectiveness of an anaesthetic. These findings were summarized in three papers in Archiv für experimentelle Pathologie und Pharmakologie by Meyer and his coworker Fritz Baum, published in 1899. A year later, Charles Ernest Overton (1865–1933) independently came to the same conclusion. This correlation became known as the Meyer-Overton hypothesis. It has been called the most influential correlation in anaesthesia Meyer also discovered that tetanus toxin acts on the central nervous system and is transported there from the periphery via the motor neuron
Motor neuron
In vertebrates, the term motor neuron classically applies to neurons located in the central nervous system that project their axons outside the CNS and directly or indirectly control muscles...
s. This explains why the incubation time always takes several hours, and why therapy with antibodies
Antibody
An antibody, also known as an immunoglobulin, is a large Y-shaped protein used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects such as bacteria and viruses. The antibody recognizes a unique part of the foreign target, termed an antigen...
is of limited value.
Meyer and Rudolf Gottlieb wrote a major German pharmacology textbook that was published in nine editions between 1910 and 1936. he also played an important role in the development and implementation of drug regulation in Austria.
Awards
Meyer received many awards and honors over the course of his career, at many different levels. One of the highest honors he received was the founding of the 'Hans Meyer Medal' on his 70th birthday by the Vienna Academy of Sciences. This medal was to be awarded every fifth year for the most important pharmacological contribution published in German. A volume of the Archiv für experimentelle Pathologie und Pharmakologie, edited by Bernhard NaunynBernhard Naunyn
Bernhard Naunyn was German pathologist who was born in Berlin. After receiving his degree at the University of Berlin in 1863, he became an assistant to pathologist Friedrich Theodor von Frerichs...
, was also dedicated to Meyer on his 70th birthday. These items and other memorabilia relating to Meyer's career are in possession of the History Collections of the Duke University Medical Center Library.