Opie, Eugene Lindsay

Opie, Eugene Lindsay
born July 5, 1873, Staunton, Va., U.S.
died March 12, 1971, Bryn Mawr, Pa.

U.S. pathologist.

He received his M.D. from Johns Hopkins University. Early in his career, he correctly deduced that degenerative changes in the islets of Langerhans caused diabetes mellitus and theorized that blockage of the junction of the bile and pancreatic ducts caused acute pancreatitis. He later showed that tuberculosis (TB) was spread by contact, including from one family member to another. His work led to use of X-ray films to detect asymptomatic TB, the sputum test to predict the chance of its spread, and injection of heat-killed tubercle bacilli to prevent infection.

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▪ American pathologist
born July 5, 1873, Staunton, Va., U.S.
died Mar. 12, 1971, Bryn Mawr, Pa.

      American pathologist who conducted important research on the causes, transmission, and diagnosis of tuberculosis and on immunization against the disease.

      Opie received his M.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 1897, after which he took a position in the pathology laboratory there. During the five years he remained at Hopkins, he conducted postmortem examinations on patients with diabetes mellitus and correctly postulated that the degenerative changes in the pancreatic tissues known as the islands (or islets) of Langerhans which he had observed might be the cause of the disease. Opie also originated the theory that obstruction of the junction of the bile and pancreatic ducts is the cause of acute pancreatitis. His Diseases of the pancreas (1902) was the standard text on the subject until the 1930s.

      Between 1904 and 1915 Opie was first a member of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research and then professor of pathology at Washington University (St. Louis) School of Medicine. In 1923, Opie became director of the Henry Phipps Institute for the Study of tuberculosis at the University of Pennsylvania. At the time, pathologists were not certain how tuberculosis was transmitted. Opie conducted a study which demonstrated that the disease was spread by contact and that it occurs in families, being spread from one member to another and from one generation to the next. He found that X-ray examinations could be used to detect asymptomatic tuberculosis and also that the sputum test could be used to predict the likelihood of tuberculosis transmission in a household. He also found that heat-killed tubercle bacilli could be injected to prevent infection. Opie also carried out significant work on pneumonia, trench fever, cancer, influenza, and diseases of the liver.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Opie, Eugene Lindsay — (5 jul. 1873, Staunton, Va., EE.UU.–12 mar. 1971, Bryn Mawr, Pa.). Patólogo estadounidense. Obtuvo su M.D. en la Universidad Johns Hopkins. A comienzos de su carrera dedujo correctamente que la diabetes mellitus era producida por alteraciones… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Eugene Lindsay Opie — Infobox Scientist name = PAGENAME box width = image width =150px caption = PAGENAME birth date = July 5, 1873 birth place = death date = March 12, 1971 death place = residence = citizenship = nationality = ethnicity = field = pathology work… …   Wikipedia

  • Lindsay — Lindsay, Nicolas Vachel * * * (as used in expressions) Anderson, Lindsay Lindsay, Howard Lindsay, (Nicholas) Vachel Opie, Eugene Lindsay …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Eugene — /yooh jeen / or, for 2, /yooh jeen/, n. 1. a city in W Oregon. 105,624. 2. a male given name: from a Greek word meaning wellborn. * * * I City (pop., 2000: 137,893), western Oregon, U.S. Located on the Willamette River, it was settled by Eugene… …   Universalium

  • Eugène — /ue zhen /, n. Prince (François Eugène de Savoie Carignan), 1663 1736, Austrian general, born in France. * * * I City (pop., 2000: 137,893), western Oregon, U.S. Located on the Willamette River, it was settled by Eugene Skinner in 1846. Named… …   Universalium

  • Eugene — (as used in expressions) Aldrin, Edwin Eugene, Jr. Debs, Eugene V(ictor) Edgerton, Harold E(ugene) Louis Eugene Walcott Eugene Alden Hackman Eugene Curran Kelly Roger Eugene Maris McCarthy, Eugene J(oseph) O Neill, Eugene (Gladstone) Opie, Eugene …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Lindsay — /lind zee, lin /, n. 1. Howard, 1889 1968, U.S. playwright, producer, and actor. 2. John V(liet) /vleet/, born 1921, U.S. politician: mayor of New York City 1966 74. 3. (Nicholas) Vachel /vay cheuhl/, 1879 1931, U.S. poet. 4. a town in SE Ontario …   Universalium

  • Opie — may refer to: Surnames Alan Opie, (born 1945), baritone singer Amelia Opie (1769 1853), English author wife of John Opie Catherine Opie, (born 1961), American artist and photographer Eugene Lindsay Opie (1873 1971), American pathologist Iona Opie …   Wikipedia

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  • Charles Russell Bardeen — Charles Russell Bardeen, M.D. Bardeen in 1914 Born 8 February 1871 …   Wikipedia

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