William hewson's studies of red blood corpuscles and the evolving
concept of a cell membrane.
Kleinzeller, Arnost.
Department of Physiology, University of Pennsylvania School of
Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104
APStracts 2:0397C, 1995.
The botanist Carl N[umlaut]ageli is generally considered to have laid
the basis for the cell membrane concept by his 1855 study of the
osmotic properties of plant cells. It is shown here that William
Hewson in 1773 presented cogent experimental evidence for the concept
of a cell membrane in red blood corpuscles. Although his work was
largely confirmed in subsequent studies, and a cell membrane became
an attribute of the cell in T. Schwann's cell theory, the idea of a
cell membrane was rejected by anatomists in 1861 essentially on
theoretical grounds, and plant physiologists did not mention Hewson's
pioneering endeavor. As a consequence, Hewson's work has been ignored
to this day. A broad cell membrane concept then had to await the
ingenious work of Overton, started in 1895. The possible reasons for
these lapses in scientific recognition are analyzed.
Received 12 June 1995; accepted in final form 30 October 1995.
APS Manuscript Number C665-5.
Article publication pending Am. J. Physiol. (Cell Physiology).
ISSN 1080-4757 Copyright 1995 The American Physiological Society.
Published in APStracts on 30 November 95