Theodor Boveri | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 12 October 1862 |
| Died | 15 October 1915 |
| Nationality | German |
| Known for | Embryonic development Boveri-Sutton chromosome theory Centrosome |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Genetics,Cell biology |
Theodor Heinrich Boveri (12 October 1862 – 15 October 1915) was aGermanbiologist who made discoveries incytology,embryology andgenetics. His career was devoted to the processes whereby a new individual arises from parental reproductive materials.[1]
His work withsea urchins showed that it was necessary to have allchromosomes present in order for proper development of theembryo to take place.[2] This discovery was an important part of the Boveri-Sutton chromosome theory. His other significant discovery was thecentrosome (1888), which he described as theespecial organ of cell division. Boveri also discovered the phenomenon ofchromatin diminution during embryonic development of the nematodeParascaris.[3][4]
1902–1904: Boveri, in a series of papers, drew attention to the correspondence between the behaviour of chromosomes and the results obtained by Mendel.[5] He said that chromosomes were "independent entities which retain their independence even in the resting nucleus... What comes out of the nucleus is what goes into it".
In 1903Walter Sutton suggested that chromosomes, which segregate in a Mendelian fashion, are hereditary units.[6]E.B. Wilson, who was Sutton's teacher, called this theSutton–Boveri hypothesis.
Boveri reasoned that acancerous tumor begins with a singlecell in which the make up of its chromosomes becomes scrambled, causing the cells to divide uncontrollably.[7]
It was only later that researchers such asThomas Hunt Morgan showed that Boveri was correct.[8]
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