History
Different demographic regions have their history concerning veterinary medicine and physiology. The history of physiology and medicine in a tropical country like India, dating back to the early Vedic period, is fascinating.
In Rigveda (2000-4000 BC), we can find fragments of evidence indicating the presence of literature on Veterinary Science, where physicians dealt with both animals and humans comprehensively. The veterinary sciences and animal husbandry practices have been mentioned in Atharvaveda too. Furthermore, in pieces of literature like Asva-Ayurveda: about horses; Gau-Ayurveda: about cows; Hasti-Ayurveda: about elephants and Shyenka-Ayurveda: about Hawks, preservation, and breeding practices are chronicled very specifically. Salihotra, regarded as the “Father of Veterinary Sciences” in India. Palkapya (700-400 BC) dealt with elephants’ anatomy, physiology, and management in detail.Subsequently, outside Asia, the biggest chunk of physiological research was conducted using animal models to understand human anatomy and physiology better. For example, Claudius Galenus (AD 129-circa 199) performed studies to learn more about the body’s mechanisms by performing dissection and vivisection on nonhuman primates, such as Barbary apes, to establish the validity of his physiological theories. Ancient Greek physiological ideas, customs, and philosophies were advanced during the Medieval period by Ibn al-Nafis (1213-1288), who discovered and characterised the heart and lungs anatomy. His revolutionary work established the crucial relationship between lungs and the aeration of the blood. The first modern anatomy textbook was written by Andrea Vesalius (1514-1564). Blood flow and cardiac contractions and relaxations were demonstrated by William Harvey (1578-1657).
In the eighteenth century, two Dutch physicians, Hermann Boerhaave and Albrecht von Haller proposed bodily functions as physical and chemical processes.
Further, during the nineteenth century, the pace catches up very rapidly. Mathias Schleiden and Theodor Schwann proposed “Cell theory”. Claude Bernard (1813-1878) coined the term milieu interieur (internal environment), which refers to the preservation of the internal environment in living organisms regardless of its external environment, which was refined by Walter B. Cannon (1871-1945), who coined the word homeostasis.Per Scholander (1905-1980) was a comparative physiologist who specialised in the physiological responses of animals to extreme temperatures, such as warm-blooded animals in a cold environment. George Bartholomew (1923-2006) officially founded the section on ecological physiology, where he coupled animal behaviour, physiology, and their interface with the environment to understand animals’ adaptation better. Knut Schmidt-Nielsen (1915-2007) was also an expert on environmental physiology. His primary research concentrated on the adaptation of camels to desert conditions. He pointed out the moisture recapture mechanism in exhaled air, which accounts for nearly 60% of the reduction in water loss in camels compared to other animals. Additionally, many other physiologists have made substantial contributions to this huge ocean of knowledge known as physiology.
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