Charles Scott Sherrington

Sir Charles Scott Sherrington

In addition to his work in physiology, Sherrington did research in histology, bacteriology, and pathology. He was president of the Royal Society in the early 1920s.

Biography

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Early years and education

Official biographies claim Charles Scott Sherrington was born in Islington, London, England, on 27 November 1857, and that he was the son of James Norton Sherrington, a country doctor, and his wife, Anne Thurtell.^[9] However James Norton Sherrington was an ironmonger and artist's colourman in Great Yarmouth, not a doctor, and died in Yarmouth in 1848, nearly 9 years before Charles was born.^[10][11]

In the 1861 census, Charles is recorded as Charles Scott (boarder, 4, born India) with Anne Sherrington (widow) as the head and Caleb Rose (visitor, married, surgeon).^[12] He was brought up in this household with Caleb recorded as head in 1871,^[13] although Anne and Caleb did not marry until after the death of his wife in 1880.^[14]

The relationship between Charles and his childhood family is unknown. During the 1860s the whole family moved to Anglesea Road, Ipswich, reputedly because London exacerbated Caleb Rose's tendency to asthma.^[15]

Sherrington's origins have been discussed in several published sources: Chris Moss and Susan Hunter, in the Journal of Medical Biography of January 2018, presented an article discussing the potential origins of Charles Sherrington, i.e. whether he was born in India of unknown parents, or was the illegitimate child of Caleb Rose and Anne Sherrington.^[16]

Erling Norrby, PhD, in Nobel Prizes and Notable Discoveries (2016) observed: "His family origin apparently is not properly given in his official biography. Considering that motherhood is a matter of fact and fatherhood a matter of opinion, it can be noted that his father was not James Norton Sherrington, from whom his family name was derived. Charles was born 9 years after the death of his presumed father. Instead Charles and his two brothers were the illegitimate sons of Caleb Rose, a highly regarded Ipswich surgeon."^[17]

In Ipswich Town: A History, Susan Gardiner writes: "George and William Sherrington, along with their older brother, Charles, were almost certainly the illegitimate sons of Anne Brookes, née Thurtell and Caleb Rose, a leading surgeon from Ipswich, with whom she was living in College Road, Islington at the time that all three boys were born. No father was named in the baptism register of St James' Church, Clerkenwell, and there is no official record of the registration of any of their births. It was claimed they were the sons of a country doctor, James Norton Sherrington. However, it was with Caleb Rose that Anne and the three Sherrington boys moved to Anglesea Road, Ipswich in 1860 and the couple were married in 1880 after Caleb's first wife had died."^[18]

Judith Swazey, in Reflexes and Motor Integration: Sherrington's Concept of Integrative Action (1969), quotes Charles Scott Sherrington's son, Carr Sherrington: "James N. Sherrington was always called Mr. and I have no knowledge that he was a Dr. either in law or in medicine... [He] was mainly interested in art and was a personal friend of J. B. Crone and other painters."^[19]

Caleb Rose was noteworthy as both a classical scholar and an archaeologist. At the family's Edgehill House in Ipswich one could find a fine selection of paintings, books, and geological specimens.

Sherrington entered Ipswich School in 1871.^[1] Thomas Ashe, a famous English poet, taught at the school. Ashe served as an inspiration to Sherrington, instilling a love of classics and the desire to travel.

Rose had pushed Sherrington towards medicine. Sherrington first began to study with the Royal College of Surgeons of England. He also sought to study at Cambridge, but a bank failure had devastated the family's finances. Sherrington elected to enroll at St Thomas' Hospital in September 1876 as a "perpetual pupil".^[1] He did so in order to allow his two younger brothers to do so ahead of him. The two studied law there. Medical studies at St. Thomas's Hospital were intertwined with studies at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge.^[20] Physiology was Sherrington's chosen major at Cambridge. There, he studied under the "father of British physiology," Sir Michael Foster.^[22]

Sherrington played football for his grammar school, and for Ipswich Town Football Club; he played rugby for St. Thomas's, was on the rowing team at Oxford.^[20][23] During June 1875, Sherrington passed his preliminary examination in general education at the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS). This preliminary exam was required for Fellowship, and also exempted him from a similar exam for the Membership. In April 1878, he passed his Primary Examination for the Membership of the RCS, and twelve months later the Primary for Fellowship.

In October 1879, Sherrington entered Cambridge as a

The 7th

A committee, including Langley, was made up to investigate. Both the dog and the monkey were chloroformed. The right hemisphere of the dog was delivered to Cambridge for examination. Sherrington performed a histological examination of the hemisphere, acting as a junior colleague to Langley. In 1884, Langley and Sherrington reported on their findings in a paper. The paper was the first for Sherrington.^[1]

Travel

In the winter of 1884–1885, Sherrington left England for Strasbourg. There, he worked with Goltz. Goltz, like many others, positively influenced Sherrington. Sherrington later said of Goltz that: "[h]e taught one that in all things only the best is good enough."^[1]

A case of

Sherrington did not meet Santiago Ramón y Cajal on this trip. While Sherrington and his group remained in Toledo, Cajal was hundreds of miles away in Zaragoza.^[20]

Later that year Sherrington travelled to Rudolf Virchow in Berlin to inspect the cholera specimens he procured in Spain. Virchow later on sent Sherrington to Robert Koch for a six weeks' course in technique. Sherrington ended up staying with Koch for a year to do research in bacteriology. Under these two, Sherrington parted with a good foundation in physiology, morphology, histology, and pathology.^[22] During this period he may have also studied with Waldeyer and Zuntz.

In 1886, Sherrington went to Italy to again investigate a cholera outbreak. While in Italy, Sherrington spent much time in art galleries. It was in this country that Sherrington's love for rare books became an obsession.^[20]

Employment

In 1891, Sherrington was appointed as superintendent of the Brown Institute for Advanced Physiological and Pathological Research of the University of London, a center for human and animal physiological and pathological research.^[20][21] Sherrington succeeded Sir Victor Alexander Haden Horsley.^[26] There, Sherrington worked on segmental distribution of the spinal dorsal and ventral roots, he mapped the sensory dermatomes, and in 1892 discovered that muscle spindles initiated the stretch reflex. The institute allowed Sherrington to study many animals, both small and large. The Brown Institute had enough space to work with large primates such as apes.

Liverpool

Sherrington's first job of full-professorship came with his appointment as Holt Professor of Physiology at

Sherrington showed that muscle excitation was inversely proportional to the inhibition of an opposing group of muscles. Speaking of the excitation-inhibition relationship, Sherrington said "desistence from action may be as truly active as is the taking of action." Sherrington continued his work on reciprocal innervation during his years at Liverpool. Come 1913, Sherrington was able to say that "the process of excitation and inhibition may be viewed as polar opposites [...] the one is able to neutralize the other." Sherrington's work on reciprocal innervation was a notable contribution to the knowledge of the spinal cord.^[1]

Oxford

As early as 1895, Sherrington had tried to gain employment at Oxford University. By 1913, the wait was over. Oxford offered Sherrington the

Sherrington's philosophy as a teacher can be seen in his response to the question of what was the real function of Oxford University in the world. Sherrington said:

"After some hundreds of years of experience we think that we have learned here in Oxford how to teach what is known. But now with the undeniable upsurge of scientific research, we cannot continue to rely on the mere fact that we have learned how to teach what is known. We must learn to teach the best attitude to what is not yet known. This also may take centuries to acquire but we cannot escape this new challenge, nor do we want to."^[20]

Waynflete Chair of Physiology – and Derek Denny-Brown, who worked with Sherrington at Oxford (1924–1928)).^[28]

Sherrington's teachings at Oxford were interrupted by World War I. When the war started, it left his classes with only nine students. During the war, he laboured at a shell factory to support the war and to study fatigue in general, but specifically industrial fatigue. His weekday work hours were from 7:30am to 8:30pm; and from 7:30am to 6:00pm on the weekends.^[20]

In March 1916, Sherrington fought for women to be admitted to the medical school at Oxford.

He lived at 9 Chadlington Road in north Oxford from 1916 to 1934, and on 28 April 2022 an Oxfordshire blue plaque in his honour was unveiled on this house.^[29]

Retirement

Charles Sherrington retired from Oxford in the year of 1936.^[1] He then moved to his boyhood town of Ipswich, where he built a house.^[22] There, he kept up a large correspondence with pupils and others from around the world. He also continued to work on his poetic, historical, and philosophical interests.^[27] From 1944 until his death he was President of the Ipswich Museum, on the committee he had previously served.^[30]

Sherrington's mental faculties were crystal clear up to the time of his sudden death, which was caused by a sudden heart failure at age 94. His bodily health, however, did suffer in old age. Arthritis was a major burden.^[22] Speaking of his condition, Sherrington said "old age isn't pleasant[,] one can't do things for oneself."^[1] The arthritis put Sherrington in a nursing home in the year before his death, in 1951.^[27]

Family

On 27 August 1891, Sherrington married Ethel Mary Wright (died 1933), daughter of John Ely Wright of Preston Manor, Suffolk, England. They had one child, a son named Charles ("Carr") E.R. Sherrington, who was born in 1897.^[22]

On weekends during the Oxford years the couple would frequently host a large group of friends and acquaintances at their house for an enjoyable afternoon.^[1]

Publications

The Integrative Action of the Nervous System

Published in 1906,

Silliman lectures, delivered at Yale University in 1904.^[31]

The book discussed neuron theory, the "

classicist A. W. Verrall^[32]), communication between neurons, and a mechanism for the reflex-arc function.^[7] The work effectively resolved the debate between neuron and reticular theory in mammals, thereby shaping our understanding of the central nervous system.^[31]

He theorized that the nervous system coordinates various parts of the body and that the reflexes are the simplest expressions of the interactive action of the nervous system, enabling the entire body to function toward a definite purpose. Sherrington pointed out that reflexes must be goal-directive and purposive. Furthermore, he established the nature of postural reflexes and their dependence on the anti-gravity

proprioceptive end organs, which he had previously shown to be sensory in nature ("proprioceptive" was another term he had coined^[7]). The work was dedicated to Ferrier.^[22]

Mammalian Physiology: a Course of Practical Exercises

The textbook was published in 1919 at the first possible moment after Sherrington's arrival at Oxford and the end of the War.[1]

The Assaying of Brabantius and other Verse

This collection of previously published war-time poems was Sherrington's first major poetic release, published in 1925. Sherrington's poetic side was inspired by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Sherrington was fond of Goethe the poet, but not Goethe the scientist. Speaking of Goethe's scientific writings, Sherrington said "to appraise them is not a congenial task."^[1]

Man on His Nature

A reflection on Sherrington's philosophical thought. Sherrington had long studied the 16th century French physician

zodiac signs; Sherrington discusses astrology in Fernel's time in Chapter 2.^[34] In his ideas on mind and cognition, Sherrington introduced the idea that neurons work as groups in a "million-fold democracy" to produce outcomes rather than with central control.^[35]

Honours and awards

Sherrington was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1893.^[1]

• 1899 Baly Gold Medal of the Royal College of Physicians of London^[20]
• 1905
  Royal Society of London
• 1922
  Knight Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire^[36]
• 1922 President of the British Association for the year 1922–1923^[37]
• 1924 Order of Merit
• 1927 Copley Medal
• 1932
  Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine

At the time of his death Sherrington received honoris causa Doctors from twenty-two universities: Oxford, Paris, Manchester, Strasbourg, Louvain, Uppsala, Lyon, Budapest, Athens, London, Toronto, Harvard, Dublin, Edinburgh, Montreal, Liverpool, Brussels, Sheffield, Bern, Birmingham, Glasgow, and the University of Wales.^[1]

Eponyms

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Liddell-Sherrington reflex

Associated with Edward George Tandy Liddell and Charles Scott Sherrington, the Liddell-Sherrington reflex is the tonic contraction of muscle in response to its being stretched. When a muscle lengthens beyond a certain point, the myotatic reflex causes it to tighten and attempt to shorten. This can be felt as tension during stretching exercises.

Schiff-Sherrington reflex

Associated with Moritz Schiff and Charles Scott Sherrington, describes a grave sign in animals: rigid extension of the forelimbs after damage to the spine. It may be accompanied by paradoxical respiration – the intercostal muscles are paralysed and the chest is drawn passively in and out by the diaphragm.

Sherrington's First Law

Every posterior spinal nerve root supplies a particular area of the skin, with a certain overlap of adjacent dermatomes.

Sherrington's Second Law

The law of reciprocal innervation. When contraction of a muscle is stimulated, there is a simultaneous inhibition of its antagonist. It is essential for coordinated movement.

Vulpian-Heidenhain-Sherrington phenomenon

Associated with Rudolf Peter Heinrich Heidenhain, Edmé Félix Alfred Vulpian, and Charles Scott Sherrington. Describes the slow contraction of denervated skeletal muscle by stimulating autonomic cholinergic fibres innervating its blood vessels.

See also

• List of presidents of the Royal Society

References

1. ^
   S2CID 35977575
   .
2. S2CID 40353145
   . His mentor was the neurophysiologist and Nobel Laureate, Sir Charles Sherrington who directed him in neuroscience research. Florey's initial studies on the cerebral circulation represent an original contribution to medical knowledge and highlight his remarkable scientific method. The mentorship and close personal relationship with Sherrington was a crucial factor in Florey's early research career.
3. S2CID 42127498
   .
4. ^ ^{a b} Sherrington, Charles Scott (1906). The integrative action of the nervous system (1st ed.). Oxford University Press: H. Milford. pp. xvi, 411 p., [19] leaves of plates.
5. ^ ""Sir Charles Sherrington – Nobel Lecture: Inhibition as a Coordinative Factor"". Retrieved 31 July 2012.
6. ^ "Sir Charles Scott Sherrington". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
7. ^
   PMID 15026492
   .
8. S2CID 145536063
   .
9. ^ Charles Scott Sherrington on Nobelprize.org , accessed 11 October 2020
10. ^ GRO index: 1848 Dec, Yarmouth 13, 258
11. ^ Will of James Norton Sherrington, proved at London 5 March 1849, National Archives Catalogue Reference:Prob 11/2090, image 171
12. ^ "1861 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription". Findmypast. 1861. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
13. ^ "1871 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription". Findmypast. 1871. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
14. ^ GRO marriages index: 1880 Dec, Ipswich 4a, 1377
15. S2CID 220183796
    .
16. S2CID 51622906
    .
17. ^ Nobel Prizes and Notable Discoveries, Erling Norrby, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Sweden, World Scientific Publishing, 2016, p. 24
18. ^ Ipswich Town: A History, Susan Gardiner, Amberley Publishing, 2009, Chapter 2: Origins.
19. ^ Reflexes and Motor Integration: Sherrington's Concept of Integrative Action, Judith P. Swazey, Harvard University Press, 1969, p. 211
20. ^
    ISBN 978-0-387-09063-4
    .
21. ^ ^{a b} Karl Grandin, ed. (1932). "Sir Charles Sherrington Biography". Les Prix Nobel. The Nobel Foundation. Retrieved 23 July 2008.
22. ^
    PMID 15377819
    .
23. OCLC 573353
    .
24. ^ "Sherrington, Charles Scott (SHRN879CS)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
25. ^ University of Cambridge Calendar, 1894-95, p. 330
26. ^ ^{a b} "Sir Charles Scott Sherrington". Who Named It?. 2008. Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 23 July 2008.
27. ^
    ISBN 978-1-86094-245-7. Archived from the original
    (PDF) on 26 March 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
28. S2CID 5930858
    .
29. ^ "Sir Charles Sherrington".
30. ^ Ipswich Museum Records.
31. ^
    PMID 17438014
    .
32. ISBN 9780801871184
    . Retrieved 9 June 2020.
33. ^ Charles Scott Sherrington R. Scott Spurlock, University of Edinburgh
34. ^ Sherrington, Man on his Nature (Cambridge, 1940), pp. 51–61
35. PMID 24457638
    .
36. ^ "No. 32563". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1921. p. 10716.
37. ^ Sherrington's Presidential Address to the British Association Meeting, held at Hull in 1922

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charles Scott Sherrington.

Wikiquote has quotations related to Charles Scott Sherrington.

Wikisource has original works by or about:
Charles Scott Sherrington

• Sir Charles Sherrington on Nobelprize.org
• Gibson, W.C. (2001). Twentieth Century Neurology, The British Contribution – first chapter (PDF). Imperial College Press.
  ISBN 978-1-86094-245-7. Archived from the original
  (PDF) on 26 March 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
• "Sir Charles Sherrington's Histology Demonstration Slides". History of Medical Sciences. University of Oxford. Retrieved 22 February 2013.

Professional and academic associations
Preceded by J. J. Thomson	43rd President of the Royal Society 1920–1925	Succeeded by Ernest Rutherford