Marie François Xavier Bichat

Marie François Xavier Bichat (November 14, 1771 - July 22, 1802), French anatomist and physiologist, was born at Thoirette (Jura). Bichat is best remembered as the father of modern histology and pathology. Despite the fact that he worked without a microscope he was able to advance greatly the understanding of the human body. He was the first to introduce the notion of tissue (tissues) as distinct entities. He maintained that diseases attacked tis... more

Marie François Xavier Bichat (November 14, 1771 - July 22, 1802), French anatomist and physiologist, was born at Thoirette (Jura). Bichat is best remembered as the father of modern histology and pathology. Despite the fact that he worked without a microscope he was able to advance greatly the understanding of the human body. He was the first to introduce the notion of tissue (tissues) as distinct entities. He maintained that diseases attacked tissues rather than whole organs. His father, a physician, was his first instructor. He entered the college of Nantua, and later studied at Lyon. He made rapid progress in mathematics and the physical sciences, but ultimately devoted himself to the study of anatomy and surgery under the guidance of M. A. Petit (1766-1811), chief surgeon to the Hotel Dieu at Lyon. The revolutionary disturbances compelled him to flee from Lyon and take refuge in Paris in 1793. There he became a pupil of P. J. Desault, who was so impressed with his genius that he... less