NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Torsten Wiesel

Torsten Nils Wiesel (b. June 3, 1924) was a Swedish co-recipient with David H. Hubel of the 1981 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, for their discoveries concerning information processing in the visual system; the prize was shared with Roger W. Sperry for his independent research on the cerebral hemispheres. June 3 is the 154th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (155th in leap years), with 211 days remaining. ... Year 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar). ... David Hunter Hubel (b. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... List of Nobel Prize laureates in Physiology or Medicine from 1901 to the present day. ... The visual system is the part of the nervous system which allows organisms to see. ... Roger Wolcott Sperry (August 20, 1913 - April 17, 1994) was a neurobiologist and Nobel laureate who, together with David Hunter Hubel and Torsten Nils Wiesel, won the 1981 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his work with split-brain research. ...

Research

The Hubel and Wiesel experiments greatly expanded the scientific knowledge of sensory processing. In one experiment, done in 1959, they inserted a microelectrode into the primary visual cortex of an anesthetized cat. They then projected patterns of light and dark on a screen in front of the cat. They found that some neurons fired rapidly when presented with lines at one angle, while others responded best to another angle. They called these neurons "simple cells." Still other neurons, which they termed "complex cells," responded best to lines of a certain angle moving in one direction. These studies showed how the visual system builds an image from simple stimuli into more complex representations (Goldstein, 2001). Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... An electrode is a conductor used to make contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit (e. ... Brodmann area 17 (primary visual cortex) is shown in red in this image which also shows area 18 (orange) and 19 (yellow) The primary visual cortex (usually called V1) is the most well-studied visual area in the brain. ... Drawing by Santiago RamÃ³n y Cajal of neurons in the pigeon cerebellum. ... A simple cell in the primary visual cortex is a cell that responds primarily to oriented edges and gratings (bars of particular orientations). ... Complex cells can be found both in the primary visual cortex (V1) and the secondary visual cortex (V2). ...

Hubel and Wiesel received the Nobel Prize for their work on ocular dominance columns in the 1960s and 1970s. By depriving baby kittens from using one eye, they showed that columns in the primary visual cortex receiving inputs from the other eye took over the areas that would normally receive input from the deprived eye. These kittens also did not develop areas receiving input from both eyes, a feature needed for binocular vision. Hubel and Wiesel's experiments showed that the ocular dominance develops irreversibly early in childhood development. These studies opened the door for the understanding and treatment of childhood cataracts and strabismus. They were also important in the study of cortical plasticity (Goldstein, 2001). Ocular dominance columns are regions of neurons in the striate cortex that synapse with axons carrying transduced signals from either the left or right eye. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... Binocular vision is vision in which both eyes are used synchronously to produce a single image. ... A cataract is an opacity that develops in the crystalline lens of the eye or in its envelope. ... For the protein Strabismus, see Strabismus (protein) Strabismus, also known as heterotropia, squint, crossed eye, cockeyed, wandering eye,weak eye or wall eyed, is a condition in which the eyes are not properly aligned with each other. ... Look up plasticity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Biography

Wiesel was born in Uppsala, Sweden. In 1954, he began his scientific career in Carl Gustaf Bernhard's laboratory at the Karolinska Institute. One year later, he moved to the United States to work at Johns Hopkins University under Stephen Kuffler. In 1958, he met Hubel, beginning a collaboration that lasted over twenty years. In 1959 they moved to Harvard University. Wiesel joined the faculty of Rockefeller University in 1983 and became president of the university in 1991. He stepped down to become president emeritus in 1998. Uppsala (older spelling Upsala) is a Swedish City in central Sweden, located about 70 km north of Stockholm. ... Year 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Karolinska Institute or Karolinska institutet is a medical university in Stockholm, Sweden. ... The Johns Hopkins University, founded in 1876, is a private institution of higher learning located in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. ... Stephen William Kuffler (August 24, 1913 - October 11, 1980) is Hungarian-US neurophysiologist. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Harvard redirects here. ... Founders Hall Rockefeller University is a private university focusing primarily on graduate and postgraduate education research in the biomedical fields, located between 63rd and 68th Streets along York Avenue, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan island in New York City, New York. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...

In 2001, Wiesel was nominated to a panel in the National Institutes of Health to advise on assisting research in developing countries. Wiesel was rejected by Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson. This incident was cited by the Union of Concerned Scientists as part of a report detailing their allegations of President George W. Bush's abuse of science. 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for medical research. ... Tommy George Thompson (born November 19, 1941), a United States politician, was the 7th U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and the 42nd Governor of Wisconsin. ... The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) is an advocacy organization based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States, inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ...

See also

Single Unit Recording Single unit recording refers to the use of an electrode to record the electrophysiological activity (action potentials) from a single neuron. ...

References

External link

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine: Laureates (1976-2000)

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1976: Blumberg, Gajdusek | 1977: Guillemin, Schally, Yalow | 1978: Arber, Nathans, Smith | 1979: Cormack, Hounsfield | 1980: Benacerraf, Dausset, Snell | 1981: Sperry, Hubel, Wiesel | 1982: Bergström, Samuelsson, Vane | 1983: McClintock | 1984: Jerne, Köhler, Milstein | 1985: Brown, Goldstein | 1986: Cohen, Levi-Montalcini | 1987: Tonegawa | 1988: Black, Elion, Hitchings | 1989: Bishop, Varmus | 1990: Murray, Thomas | 1991: Neher, Sakmann | 1992: Fischer, Krebs | 1993: Roberts, Sharp | 1994: Gilman, Rodbell | 1995: Lewis, Nüsslein-Volhard, Wieschaus | 1996: Doherty, Zinkernagel | 1997: Prusiner | 1998: Furchgott, Ignarro, Murad | 1999: Blobel | 2000: Carlsson, Greengard, Kandel List of Nobel Prize laureates in Physiology or Medicine from 1901 to the present day. ... Winners of the Nobel Prize are scientists, writers and peacemakers who have been awarded in their field of endeavour, and who are known collectively as either Nobel laureates or Nobel Prize winners. ... Baruch Samuel Blumberg (born July 28, 1925) is an American scientist and recipient of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Medicine for discoveries concerning new mechanisms for the origin and dissemination of infectious diseases. ... Daniel Carleton Gajdusek in 1976 when he won the Nobel Prize in Medicine. ... Roger Guillemin ( born January 11, 1924 in Dijon, France) is a neuroendocrinologist who received the Nobel prize for Medicine in 1977 for his work on neurohormones. ... Andrzej Wiktor Schally (born November 20, 1926) in Wilno, Poland), is a Polish endocrinologist and Nobel Prize winner in 1977 in Medicine for research work. ... Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (born on July 19, 1921) is an American medical physicist, and a co-winner of the 1977 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for her development of the radioimmunoassay (RIA) technique. ... Werner Arber (born June 3, 1929) is a Swiss microbiologist. ... Daniel Nathans (October 30, 1928 - November 16, 1999) was a U.S. microbiologist. ... Dr. Hamilton O. Smith (born August 23, 1931) is an American microbiologist. ... Allan M. Cormack at Tufts University Allan MacLeod Cormack (February 23, 1924 â€“ May 7, 1998) was a South African-born American physicist who shared a part of the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on the computerized axial tomography (CAT) scan. ... Sir Godfrey Newbold Hounsfield (28 August 1919 - 12 August 2004) was an English electrical engineer who shared the 1979 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Allan McLeod Cormack for his part in developing the diagnostic technique of computerized axial tomography (CAT). ... Baruj Benacerraf, M.D. Baruj Benacerraf (born 29 October 1920) is a Venezuelan-American immunologist who shared the 1980 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of the Major histocompatibility complex genes which encode cell surface molecules important for the immune systems distinction between self and non... Jean Dausset (b. ... George Davis Snell (December 19, 1903 â€“ June 6, 1996) was a U.S. geneticist and co-recipient of the 1980 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, together with Baruj Benacerraf and Jean Dausset, for discovery of the Major histocompatibility complex genes which encode cell surface molecules important for the immune... Roger Wolcott Sperry Roger Wolcott Sperry (August 20, 1913 - April 17, 1994) was a neuropsychologist and Nobel laureate who, together with David Hunter Hubel and Torsten Nils Wiesel, won the 1981 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his work with split-brain research. ... David Hunter Hubel (b. ... Sune Karl BergstrÃ¶m (January 10, 1916 - August 15, 2004) was a Swedish biochemist. ... Bengt Ingemar Samuelsson (born May 21, 1934) is a biochemist. ... Sir John Robert Vane (March 29, 1927 - November 19, 2004) was a British pharmacologist. ... Barbara McClintock (June 16, 1902 â€“ September 2, 1992) was a pioneering American scientist and one of the worlds most distinguished cytogeneticists. ... Niels Kaj Jerne (December 23, 1911 - October 7, 1994) was a British-Danish-Swedish (English-born) immunologist. ... Georges Jean Franz KÃ¶hler (Munich, March 17, 1946 â€“ March 1, 1995 in Freiburg im Breisgau) was a German biologist. ... CÃ©sar Milstein (October 8, 1927 â€“ March 24, 2002), an Argentine-born scientist who spent most of his life in Great Britain. ... Dr. Michael Stuart Brown (b. ... Joseph L. Goldstein (b. ... Stanley Cohen (born November 17, 1922) is an American researcher and Nobel Prize Laureate in Physiology and Medicine (1986). ... Rita Levi Montalcini. ... Susumu Tonegawa (ï§æ ¹å· é€² Tonegawa Susumu, born September 6, 1939) is a Japanese scientist who won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1987 for his discovery of the genetic principle for generation of antibody diversity. ... Sir James Whyte Black, OM, FRS, FRSE, FRCP (born 14 July 1924) is a Scottish pharmacologist who invented Propranolol, synthesized Cimetidine and was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1988 for these discoveries. ... Gertrude Belle Elion (January 23, 1918 â€“ February 21, 1999) was an American biochemist and pharmacologist, and a 1988 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. ... George H. Hitchings (April 18, 1905 â€“ February 27, 1998) shared the 1988 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Sir James Black and Gertrude Elion for their discoveries of important principles for drug treatment, Hitchings specifically for his work on chemotherapy. ... J. Michael Bishop (born February 22, 1936) is an American immunologist and microbiologist who won the 1989 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. ... Harold Elliot Varmus (b. ... Joseph E. Murray (born 1 April 1919), American surgeon, performed the first successful human kidney transplant from an adult to his identical twin. ... Dr. Edward Donnall (Don) Thomas (b. ... Erwin Neher (born 1944 in Landsberg am Lech, Bavaria) is a German biologist. ... Bert Sakmann (born June 12, 1942) is a German cell physiologist. ... Dr Edmond H. Fischer (born April 6, 1920) is a Swiss-American biochemist. ... Dr Edwin Gerhard Krebs (born June 6, 1918) is an American biochemist. ... Richard J. Roberts (b. ... Phillip Allen Sharp (born 1944), U.S. geneticist and molecular biologist; co-discovered gene splicing; shared the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Richard J. Roberts for the discovery that genes in eukaryotes are not contiguous strings but contain introns, and that the splicing of messenger RNA to... Alfred Goodman Gilman (born July 1, 1941) is an American scientist. ... Martin Rodbell won a Nobel Prize in 1994 Martin Rodbell (December 1, 1925- December 7, 1998) was an American biochemist and molecular endocrinologist who is best known for his discovery of G-proteins. ... Edward B. Lewis (May 20, 1918 â€“ July 21, 2004) was an American geneticist, the winner of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Medicine. ... Christiane NÃ¼sslein-Volhard (born October 20, 1942 in Magdeburg) is a German biologist who won the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1991 and the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1995, together with Eric Wieschaus and Edward B. Lewis, for their research on the genetic... Eric F. Wieschaus (born June 8, 1947) is an American developmental biologist and Nobel Prize-winner. ... Peter Doherty on a stamp released by Australia Post Dr. Peter C. Doherty (born October 15, 1940) is an Australian researcher in the field of medicine. ... Rolf Martin Zinkernagel (January 6, 1944 in Riehen, Basel-Stadt, Switzerland) is Professor of Experimental Immunology at the University of Zurich. ... Stanley B. Prusiner, M.D. (born May 28, 1942) is a Professor of Neurology and Biochemistry at the University of California, San Francisco. ... Robert F. Furchgott (born June 4, 1916 in Charleston, South Carolina) is a Nobel Prize-winning American chemist. ... Dr. Louis J. Ignarro (b. ... Dr. Ferid Murad Ferid Murad (born September 14, 1936) is an American physician and pharmacologist, and a co-winner of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. ... GÃ¼nter Blobel (born May 21, 1936) is a German biologist. ... Arvid Carlsson (b. ... Paul Greengard (b. ... Eric Richard Kandel (born November 7, 1929) is a psychiatrist, a neuroscientist and professor of biochemistry and biophysics at Columbia University. ...

Complete List | Laureates (1901-1925) | Laureates (1926-1950) | Laureates (1951-1975) | Laureates (2001- )

Contents

Biography

See also

References

External link