Dmitri Leonidovich Romanowsky

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Dmitri Leonidovich Romanowsky
Дмитрий Леонидович Романовский
Histochemistry
InstitutionsIvangorod military hospital
Revel local infirmary
Saint Petersburg Nikolaevsky military hospital
ThesisOn the question of parasitology and therapy of malaria (1891)

Dmitri Leonidovich Romanowsky (sometimes spelled Dmitry and Romanowski,

histological stain called Romanowsky stain. It paved the way for the discovery and diagnosis of microscopic pathogens, such as malarial parasites,[2] and later developments of new histological stains that became fundamental to microbiology and physiology.[3]

While working on his doctoral research, Romanowsky developed the first effective staining method for malarial parasite in 1890. Using a specific mixture of mouldy

serendipitous case that became "one of the most significant technical advances in the history of parasitology."[4]

Biography

Romanowsky was born in 1861 in

Military Medical Academy. He graduated with honors in 1886. On 30 November 1886, he was appointed as a junior resident of the Ivangorod military hospital. After one month, he was transferred to the Revel local infirmary as an associate doctor. In 1889, he was attached to the Saint Petersburg Nikolaevsky Military hospital. He initially worked at the clinical department, and from May 1890, he was the head of the eye department.[5] He obtained his medical degree in 1891 on the thesis "On the question of parasitology and therapy of malaria."[6][7]

Romanowsky died in 1921 in Kislovodsk in North Caucasus.[8]

Invention of histological stain

Background

Romanowsky's research for his medical degree in 1880s was mainly on the identification of malarial parasite (Plasmodium).[6] Until that time malarial infection was difficult to confirm as the parasites were hard to distinguish from blood cells or cell organelles. Pigmented blood cells were often linked to malarial infection, but the pigments are not always visible.[9] When French physician Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran discovered and described the malarial protozoan (later called Plasmodium falciparum) in 1880, it was not accepted as no protozoan had ever been seen in blood cells or associated with malaria.[10]

In 1871, German chemist Adolf von Baeyer synthesised a red dye called eosin (Greek word for "morning red"), which in 1876 was found to be useful for staining tissues.[11] Another German chemist Heinrich Caro synthesised a blue dye named methylene blue in 1876,[12] which was first used as a cell stain by Robert Koch. In 1882, using methylene blue Koch discovered the causative bacterium of tuberculosis, tubercle bacillus (now Mycobacterium tuberculosis).[13] The two stains remain among the fundamental stains used in general cell and tissue staining, as well as in clinical diagnosis.[11][14]

Romanowsky stain

Romanowsky was the first to realise the differences in the staining abilities of eosin and methylene blue. The individual stains (monochromatic staining) were good only for general colouring of tissue or cell, but not for contrasting the different components.[15] By mixing specific amount of eosin and methylene blue, Romanowsky found that the mixture gave images of contrasting clarity that helped to visualise different parts and components of cells.[16] This mixture method, polychromatic staining or polychromy, with various modifications became the most efficient way of staining cells for identifying cellular components.[3][17] The chemical phenomenon by which a mixture of stains produces vibrant cell images is known as "Romanowsky effect".[15][18]

In December 1890, Romanowsky published his invention as a preliminary report of his major work for his doctoral thesis in the journal Vrach as "On the question of the structure of malaria parasites" (as translated in English).[19][20] Incorrectly, it is more often recorded in books and journals that Romanowsky published his findings in 1891,[8][21][22][23] which led to a controversy on priority that Ernst Malachowsky independently developed the technique as the latter published his research in August 1891.[20]

Romanowsky discovered that instead of fresh methylene blue, an aged and mouldy solution gave the best result, while eosin should be free of any contamination.

leukocytes
is pale-violet, with transitional colors between the light blue protoplasm of lymphocytes to violet leukocytes. Within red cells the malaria parasite may be hardly noticeable or may occupy the whole cell. In any event, the violet nucleus, surrounded by a colorless rim, is always clearly distinguishable.[20]

Romanowsky gave an elaborate description of the new technique in his thesis submitted in June 1891.[8] The staining method remains the "gold standard" for visualising blood samples, especially for malarial infection,[2] and in immunohistochemical studies.[24]

References

  1. PMID 25271310
    .
  2. ^
    PMID 15228484
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  3. ^
    S2CID 23896062
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  4. S2CID 1641027
    .
  5. ^ "IN MEMORIAM OF RUSSIAN DOCTORS - ROMANOWSKY DMITRY LEONIDOVICH AND CHENZINSKY CHESLAV IVANOVICH - IT IS DEVOTED". EMCO LTD. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  6. ^
    ISBN 978-90-420-0721-5
    .
  7. ISBN 978-0-1996410-24
    .
  8. ^
    S2CID 19829220
    .
  9. PMID 13766295
    .
  10. ^ Lalchhandama, K (2014). "The making of modern malariology: from miasma to mosquito-malaria theory" (PDF). Science Vision. 14 (1): 3–17. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-04-27.
  11. ^
    PMID 2424331
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  12. S2CID 46746062
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  13. PMID 17422248
    .
  14. PMID 19760660
    .
  15. ^
    S2CID 5168332
    .
  16. S2CID 207513741
    .
  17. PMID 12075519
    .
  18. PMID 6083774
    .
  19. ^ Romanowsky, D. L. (1890). "To a question of a structure of malaria parasites" (PDF). Vrach. 11: 1171–1173.
  20. ^
    S2CID 37401579
    .
  21. ^ Journal of Applied Microscopy. Bausch & Lomb Optical Company. 1903. p. 2229.
  22. ISBN 978-1-4614-4933-1
    .
  23. PMID 14472722
    .
  24. ^
    S2CID 265032156
    .
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