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Camillo Golgi was born in 1843 in the then city-state of Lombardy, Italy. Golgi studied medicine in Pavia. During his medical courses, he took a special interest in microscopy.
Fig. 1 Camillo Golgi
Through his histological studies and the constant need to stain tissues, Golgi discovered that the best way to stay nerve cells and neuroglia came from the use of potassium bichromate or cosmic acid. But both chemicals were scarce and expensive. As a result, Golgi had to experiment with various agents including silver.
The silver staining technique or Golgi's method was born from adversity and had its first image published in 1873.
Fig. 2 Some ganglion cell types in the convoluted grey layer of the pes Hippocampi* major by Camillo Golgi
* "The lower end of the hippocampus is enlarged and presents two or three rounded elevations or digitations which give it a paw-like appearance, and hence it is named the pes hippocampi."- thanks wiki!
This technique allowed the discovery and study of the nervous system by other scientist such as Santiago Ramón y Cajal, inspiring the birth of the neuron doctrine.
The discovery and use of this technique gave Camillo Golgi and Santiago Ramon y Cajal the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1906
Curiosity:
Despite the technology and scientific evolution, the action mechanism behind this technique is still unknown.
References:
Foundations of the Neuron Doctrine: 25th Anniversary Edition, 2 edn (New York, 2015; online edn, Oxford Academic, 1 Nov. 2015), https://doi.org/, accessed 2 Sept. 2022.
Wikipedia Contributors. (2022, April 12). Silver staining. Wikipedia; Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_staining
Wikipedia Contributors. (2021, June 7). Pes hippocampi. Wikipedia; Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pes_hippocampi
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