Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard
Encyclopedia
Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard FRS (8 April 1817 – 2 April 1894), also known as Charles Edward, was a Mauritian
physiologist and neurologist
who, in 1850, became the first to describe what is now called Brown-Séquard syndrome
.
, Mauritius
to an American father and a French mother. After graduating in medicine
at Paris in 1846 he returned to Mauritius with the intention of practicing there, but in 1852 he went to the United States. There he was appointed to the faculty of the Medical College of Virginia where he conducted experiments in the basement of the Egyptian Building
.
Subsequently he returned to Paris, and in 1859 he migrated to London, becoming physician
to the National Hospital for the Paralysed and Epileptic. There he stayed for about five years, expounding his views on the pathology
of the nervous system
in numerous lectures which attracted considerable attention. In 1864 he again crossed the Atlantic, and was appointed professor of physiology and neuropathology
at Harvard
. He relinquished this position in 1867, and in 1869 became professor at the École de Médecine in Paris, but in 1873 he again returned to America and began to practice in New York
.
Finally, he went back to Paris to succeed Claude Bernard
in 1878 as professor of experimental medicine in the Collège de France
, and he remained there until his death, which occurred in 1894 at Sceaux
, France. He was buried in Paris at the Cimetière du Montparnasse.
Brown-Séquard was quite a controversial and eccentric figure, and is also known for self-reporting "rejuvenated sexual prowess after eating extracts of monkey testis". The response is now thought to have been a placebo effect, but apparently this was "sufficient to set the field of endocrinology
off and running."
Interestingly, many nations claim him as their own, he was the son of an American sea captain and a French woman. He was born in Mauritius
. He studied in the US and France and worked several years in the UK, US and France.
In 1886 Brown-Séquard was elected to the Board of the Sugar Club. He also was a member of the Royal Society of London.
and animal heat
, as well as many facts of the highest importance on the nervous system
. He was the first scientist to work out the physiology of the spinal cord
, demonstrating that the decussation
of the fibres carrying pain and temperature sensation occurs in the cord itself. His name was immortalized in the history of medicine
with the description of a syndrome which bears his name (Brown-Séquard syndrome) due to the hemisection of the spinal cord, which he described after observing accidental injury of the spinal cord in farmers cutting sugar cane in Mauritius.
Far more important is that he was one of the first to postulate the existence of substances, now known as hormones, secreted into the bloodstream to affect distant organs. In particular, he demonstrated (in 1856) that removal of the adrenal glands resulted in death, due to lack of essential hormones. In his extreme old age, he advocated the hypodermic injection of a fluid prepared from the testicles of guinea pig
s and dogs, as a means of prolonging
human life. It was known, among scientists, derisively, as the Brown-Séquard Elixir.
Brown-Séquard's research, published in about 500 essays and papers, especially in the Archives de Physiologie, which he helped to found in 1868 along with Jean-Martin Charcot
and Alfred Vulpian
, cover a very wide range of physiological and pathological subjects.
In the late 19th century Brown-Séquard gave rise to much controversy in the case of supposed modification-inheritance by his experiments on guinea pigs. In a series of experiments extending over many years (1869 to 1891), he showed that a partial section of the spinal cord, or a section of the sciatic nerve
, was followed after a few weeks by a peculiar morbid state resembling epilepsy
. The offspring of the animals operated on were frequently decrepit, and a certain number showed a tendency to the so-called epilepsy.
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
physiologist and neurologist
Neurologist
A neurologist is a physician who specializes in neurology, and is trained to investigate, or diagnose and treat neurological disorders.Neurology is the medical specialty related to the human nervous system. The nervous system encompasses the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. A specialist...
who, in 1850, became the first to describe what is now called Brown-Séquard syndrome
Brown-Séquard syndrome
Brown-Séquard syndrome, also known as Brown-Séquard's hemiplegia and Brown-Séquard's paralysis, is a loss of sensation and motor function that is caused by the lateral hemisection of the spinal cord...
.
Early life
Brown-Séquard was born at Port LouisPort Louis
-Economy:The economy is dominated by its port, which handles Mauritius' international trade. The port was founded by the French who preferred Port Louis as the City is shielded by the Port Louis/Moka mountain range. It is the largest container handling facility in the Indian Ocean and can...
, Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
to an American father and a French mother. After graduating in medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
at Paris in 1846 he returned to Mauritius with the intention of practicing there, but in 1852 he went to the United States. There he was appointed to the faculty of the Medical College of Virginia where he conducted experiments in the basement of the Egyptian Building
Egyptian Building
The Egyptian Building is a National Historic Landmark in Richmond, Virginia, built in 1845. It is the first permanent home of the Medical Department of Hampden-Sydney College and now is a part of Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. It is located on Shockoe Hill at the 1200 block of E...
.
Subsequently he returned to Paris, and in 1859 he migrated to London, becoming physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
to the National Hospital for the Paralysed and Epileptic. There he stayed for about five years, expounding his views on the pathology
Pathology
Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
of the nervous system
Nervous system
The nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous...
in numerous lectures which attracted considerable attention. In 1864 he again crossed the Atlantic, and was appointed professor of physiology and neuropathology
Neuropathology
Neuropathology is the study of disease of nervous system tissue, usually in the form of either small surgical biopsies or whole autopsy brains. Neuropathology is a subspecialty of anatomic pathology, neurology, and neurosurgery...
at Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. He relinquished this position in 1867, and in 1869 became professor at the École de Médecine in Paris, but in 1873 he again returned to America and began to practice in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Finally, he went back to Paris to succeed Claude Bernard
Claude Bernard
Claude Bernard was a French physiologist. He was the first to define the term milieu intérieur . Historian of science I. Bernard Cohen of Harvard University called Bernard "one of the greatest of all men of science"...
in 1878 as professor of experimental medicine in the Collège de France
Collège de France
The Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
, and he remained there until his death, which occurred in 1894 at Sceaux
Sceaux
Sceaux is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Sceaux, Yonne, in the Yonne département* Sceaux, Hauts-de-Seine, in the Hauts-de-Seine département, famous for the Château de Sceaux...
, France. He was buried in Paris at the Cimetière du Montparnasse.
Brown-Séquard was quite a controversial and eccentric figure, and is also known for self-reporting "rejuvenated sexual prowess after eating extracts of monkey testis". The response is now thought to have been a placebo effect, but apparently this was "sufficient to set the field of endocrinology
Endocrinology
Endocrinology is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions called hormones, the integration of developmental events such as proliferation, growth, and differentiation and the coordination of...
off and running."
Interestingly, many nations claim him as their own, he was the son of an American sea captain and a French woman. He was born in Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
. He studied in the US and France and worked several years in the UK, US and France.
In 1886 Brown-Séquard was elected to the Board of the Sugar Club. He also was a member of the Royal Society of London.
Works
Brown-Séquard was a keen observer and experimentalist. He contributed largely to our knowledge of the bloodBlood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
and animal heat
Metabolism
Metabolism is the set of chemical reactions that happen in the cells of living organisms to sustain life. These processes allow organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and respond to their environments. Metabolism is usually divided into two categories...
, as well as many facts of the highest importance on the nervous system
Nervous system
The nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous...
. He was the first scientist to work out the physiology of the spinal cord
Spinal cord
The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain . The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system...
, demonstrating that the decussation
Decussation
Decussation is used in biological contexts to describe a crossing.Examples include:* In the brain, where nerve fibers obliquely cross from one lateral part to the other, that is to say they cross at a level other than their origin...
of the fibres carrying pain and temperature sensation occurs in the cord itself. His name was immortalized in the history of medicine
History of medicine
All human societies have medical beliefs that provide explanations for birth, death, and disease. Throughout history, illness has been attributed to witchcraft, demons, astral influence, or the will of the gods...
with the description of a syndrome which bears his name (Brown-Séquard syndrome) due to the hemisection of the spinal cord, which he described after observing accidental injury of the spinal cord in farmers cutting sugar cane in Mauritius.
Far more important is that he was one of the first to postulate the existence of substances, now known as hormones, secreted into the bloodstream to affect distant organs. In particular, he demonstrated (in 1856) that removal of the adrenal glands resulted in death, due to lack of essential hormones. In his extreme old age, he advocated the hypodermic injection of a fluid prepared from the testicles of guinea pig
Guinea pig
The guinea pig , also called the cavy, is a species of rodent belonging to the family Caviidae and the genus Cavia. Despite their common name, these animals are not in the pig family, nor are they from Guinea...
s and dogs, as a means of prolonging
Longevity
The word "longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography or known as "long life", especially when it concerns someone or something lasting longer than expected ....
human life. It was known, among scientists, derisively, as the Brown-Séquard Elixir.
Brown-Séquard's research, published in about 500 essays and papers, especially in the Archives de Physiologie, which he helped to found in 1868 along with Jean-Martin Charcot
Jean-Martin Charcot
Jean-Martin Charcot was a French neurologist and professor of anatomical pathology. He is known as "the founder of modern neurology" and is "associated with at least 15 medical eponyms", including Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis...
and Alfred Vulpian
Alfred Vulpian
Edmé Félix Alfred Vulpian was a French physician and neurologist. He was the co-discoverer of Vulpian-Bernard spinal muscular atrophy and the Vulpian-Heidenhain-Sherrington phenomenon....
, cover a very wide range of physiological and pathological subjects.
In the late 19th century Brown-Séquard gave rise to much controversy in the case of supposed modification-inheritance by his experiments on guinea pigs. In a series of experiments extending over many years (1869 to 1891), he showed that a partial section of the spinal cord, or a section of the sciatic nerve
Sciatic nerve
The sciatic nerve is a large nerve fiber in humans and other animals. It begins in the lower back and runs through the buttock and down the lower limb...
, was followed after a few weeks by a peculiar morbid state resembling epilepsy
Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
. The offspring of the animals operated on were frequently decrepit, and a certain number showed a tendency to the so-called epilepsy.
External links
- Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard - Biographical information and selected publications
- New York Times obituary (1894)