Starling, Ernst Henry

STARLING, Ernst Henry (1866–1927), a major English physiologist. He graduated from the medical faculty of London University in 1886, after which he worked in Germany in Kühne's laboratory. Initially, he was a physician in a hospital, but from 1889 he devoted himself entirely to physiology. In 1891, he worked in Germany with Heidenhain, and also in Paris at the Pasteur Institute on questions of phagocytosis with Metchnikoff, and made an English translation of Metchnikoff's book "Lectures on the Comparative Pathology of Inflammation." In 1895, on Starling's initiative, the construction of a special physiological institute in London was begun, which became the best physiological institution in England thanks to the works of Starling and his numerous students. In general, Starling's physiological research is concentrated around the following questions (chronologically): 1) The question of lymph formation in connection with questions of the nature of intracapillary blood pressure. These works, conducted partly in Heidenhain's laboratory, gave Starling the basis to construct his ultrafiltration theory of lymph formation, and also to arrive at the substantiation of the doctrine of the colloid-osmotic pressure of blood. 2) The question of the movement and innervation of the intestine. These works, conducted jointly with Bayliss, revealed the role of both local and central nervous apparatuses in intestinal motility. 3) The mechanism of pancreatic secretion (1902–05). These works are very rich in their content. They provided: a) further development of concepts about the mechanism of pancreatic secretion through the discovery of the so-called humoral excitant—secretin (see Digestion). Before Starling's works, this mechanism was considered, based on the works of I. P. Pavlov, a phenomenon of a purely nervous order; b) a description of the phenomenon named by Starling a "chemical reflex," which led him to broad generalizations along the line of the role of chemical agents in the regulation of physiological processes (chemical integration of the organism), which formed the basis of modern endocrinology, Croonian Lecture "The Chemical Correlation of the Functions of the Body" (1905); c) a description of the basic properties of the newly discovered hormone secretin, as well as the properties of trypsin in natural pancreatic juice (see Trypsin). 4) Questions of the contraction and adaptation of the isolated heart (1909–15). Starling provided a new methodology for studying the isolated heart—the methodology of the so-called Starling heart-lung preparation; he studied in detail the significance of O₂ and CO₂ for the activity of the heart; he studied the conditions influencing the magnitude of cardiac activity, and the adaptation of the heart during this (pressure in the thoracic cavity; pressure in the vena cava and other hemodynamic conditions), which led to the formulation of the so-called "heart law" (see Heart). 5) Questions of the mechanism of blood circulation. These works were conducted from 1920 and concerned the central reflex regulation of blood circulation with the application of methods of cross-circulation and the heart-lung preparation developed by Starling. 6) Questions of urine secretion and kidney physiology. These works of the last period of Starling's life were a synthesis of his previous work, both theoretical and methodological. Proceeding from the achievements in the methodology of the heart-lung preparation, Starling and his students developed a special methodology for isolating the kidney, and proceeding from his colloid-osmotic theory, Starling attempted to provide a theory of urine formation. Starling created a large school of major physiologists. He owns a major physiological textbook, "Principles of Human Physiology," which has wide distribution and has been published in several languages (Russian translation—Vol. I–II, Moscow-Leningrad, 1931–33). During the Imperialist War, Starling took part in the development of questions of physiology related to chemical warfare, and then (1917) worked in special commissions on nutrition problems, being a scientific consultant to the Ministry of Food and a scientific delegate of England to the special commission on the nutrition of the Allied powers.