HESS (Hess), Walter R.

March 17, 1881, Mr.. - April 12, 1973
Swiss physiologist Walter Rudolf Hess was born in Frauenfilde, a small town in eastern Switzerland germanoyazychnoy area, in the family of Clemens and Gertrude (Fisher Saxon) Hess. H. was very young when his father, a physics teacher at the university, first to join it to the experimental research work. H., combining a deep interest in biological processes and the propensity for action and enrolled in the University of Lausanne in 1900. to study medicine. He continued his education at the universities of Bern, Zurich, Berlin and Kiel, receiving his medical degree at the University of Zurich in 1906. His thesis was devoted to the relationship between the viscosity of blood and functioning of the heart. Study of hemodynamics (the physical forces that define and regulate the movement of blood through the vessels) for many years remained the main interest of his direction.
. Due to the lack of funds for the completion of medical studies X
. held an internship in surgery and ophthalmology hospital in the native district. This experience allowed him to get acquainted with the functioning of the circulatory system under conditions in vivo. In 1908, Mr.. he opens his private practice in ophthalmology, which soon became profitable and takes a lot of his time. Joining this practice in 1917, he receives a place low-paid assistant in the physiological institute of the University of Zurich for further studies on the hemodynamics.
For 10 years, X. studied the regulation of heart rate and blood pressure and their relationship to other physiological processes, particularly with breathing. His studies were interrupted at the time of conscription in Switzerland during the First World War, but in 1917. He was elected to both the professor and head of the department of physiology, and these competitive positions he held until the end of his career.
By 1925, Mr.. H. expanded its research activity of the isolated respiratory and cardiovascular systems to better understand, . what he called 'neuronal mechanisms of adaptation activity of internal organs to the constantly changing environment and to each other',
. Local authorities normally not under the control of consciousness, their functions are coordinated by the so-called autonomous, or autonomic, nervous system. Previous clinical observation of patients with brain damage, and carried out animal experiments showed, . that the diencephalon - a group of brain structures, . located directly under supercallosal and vault, . - Contains the centers of the autonomic nervous system,
. 'Something that is still in the dark, when we started my own research - said X. later - is that of certain functions in certain morphological structures ... In other words, the organic structure of the control of the autonomic nervous system in the diencephalon. How can we more fully explore this issue - this is a goal that I set myself '.
. Standard method for studying the functioning of certain brain areas - monitoring the response of experimental animals to electrical stimulation of this area
. However, it was difficult to use this technique to study the diencephalon, which is deep enough without damaging the tissue surrounding the cerebral cortex.
. Using a stereotaxic instrument (which can be sent to the three planes in the direction of a specific area of the brain), X
. electrodes implanted through a small hole in the skull in certain areas of the brain, not directly seeing the internal structure. Using the thinnest electrodes and gentle surgical technique allowed to observe the animals during experimental manipulations without the use of anesthesia. Initially X. hoped that within a relatively short period of time during the experiments he could establish the basic functions of the diencephalon (particularly the hypothalamus, located under the thalamus). The centers of the hypothalamus, located close to each other, control the various functions, and can not predict what effect will cause stimulation in one or another point. Thus, X. embarked on a long and painstaking work. He supplemented the initial experience of dissection and histological studies, films about the behavior of animals after stimulation and compared how their behavior is adequately small damage of certain brain regions.
. The results of this work showed that electrical stimulation of different parts of the hypothalamus can cause changes in blood pressure, respiration, body temperature and other functions of internal organs
. H. concluded that the hypothalamus controls emotional responses and the stimulation of some of its parts is anger, fear, sexual excitement, relaxation or sleep.
X. conducted research from 1925 to 1940. Since Switzerland was a neutral country and did not participate in the Second World War, he had the opportunity to continue their experiments, but the publication of the results was possible only after the war. In 1948, Mr.. his book 'The Functional Organization of the diencephalon' ( 'The Functional Organization of the Deencephalon'), which were summarized research results to them for 25 years. In this work, justified the operation of the diencephalon as a bridge between the inner and outer regions of the brain. H. thought, . that situational identification, . example the identification of situations of fear, . connected with the activity of the cerebral cortex, . but the response of the animal (in this case, fear), . a, . a growl, . dotted wool and quickening heartbeat, . causes diencephalon,
. On the contrary, midbrain, controlling blood sugar and the degree of stretching of the stomach, at a time when the animal is hungry, stimulates the cortex and pushes the animal in search of food. The upper part of the diencephalon controls motor function, whereas the lower part, especially the hypothalamus, which regulates the responses of internal organs. Book X. became a classic scientific work not only because of the description of the diencephalon, but also because the findings were a model of accuracy and thoroughness.
X. was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1949. 'for the discovery of functional organization of the diencephalon as the coordinator of the activity of internal organs'. He shared the prize with a neurosurgeon Egas Mopishem. In the welcoming speech at the award Herbert Olivekrona of the Karolinska Institute said that the research X. shown 'that in the diencephalon are the higher centers of autonomous functions, coordinating these functions with the reactions of skeletal muscles, adapted to perform certain functions'. Olivekrona further said that 'his research X. brilliantly answered a number of complex issues regarding the relationship of individual sections of the brain 'and under the control of vital functions of the organism.
In 1951, after retiring from the Institute of Physiology, X. continued study of functions of the diencephalon and the integrative function of the nervous system.
In 1908, Mr.. H. married Louise Zandmayer; they have a son and daughter. In his summer house in the southern Alps, he was happy gardening, cultivated vineyards and studied traditional handicrafts from local farmers.
Died X. in 1973. in Ascona, near Locarno (Switzerland), at the age of 92.
Among numerous awards and titles, X. - Honorary degrees from McGill University, University of Bern, Geneva and Freiburg. He was a member of many professional societies and the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.