LUCIANI

LUCIANI Luigi (Luigi Luciani, 1840-1919), major Italian physiologist. After graduating from the medical faculty in Bologna, he was first a docent and then a professor of general pathology there. From 1882 to 1893, L. was professor of physiology in Florence, and from 1893 to 1917 in Rome. Luciani's basic physiological education was received from the famous Ludwig in Leipzig. L.'s works concern many areas of physiology. He was the first to express the view that diastole of the heart is caused not by simple relaxation of the cardiac muscle, but by active stretching of the latter. L.'s research on hunger brought him the greatest fame, and especially his work on the functions of the cerebellum. L.'s research on hunger formed the basis for further work by Benedict, who completely confirmed L.'s views. L.'s works on the cerebellum still form the basis of our knowledge of this organ. In these works, L. demonstrated refined surgical technique, obtaining dogs with complete and partial removal of the cerebellum. L. also authored the 4-volume textbook of physiology, translated into Spanish, English, and German, which is still considered one of the best.-Main works published in German: "Physiologie des Hungers" (Lpz., 1890); "Das Kleinhirn" (Lpz., 1893); "Physiologie des Menschen" (Vol. I-IV, Jena, 1905-11).