biology

Leopold Auerbach

Leopold Auerbach is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Leopold Auerbach rather than just read about it. In short: Leopold Auerbach (27 April 1828 – 30 September 1897) was a German Jewish anatomist and neuropathologist born in Breslau. He is best known for discovering the myenteric plexus also known as Auerbach's plexus, which helps control the gastrointestinal tract.

Key takeaways

Leopold Auerbach belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Leopold Auerbach to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Leopold Auerbach from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Leopold Auerbach (27 April 1828 – 30 September 1897) was a German Jewish anatomist and neuropathologist born in Breslau. He is best known for discovering the myenteric plexus also known as Auerbach's plexus, which helps control the gastrointestinal tract.

Education and career Auerbach studied medicine at the Universities of Breslau, Berlin and the Leipzig. He became a physician in 1849, obtained his habilitation in 1863. From 1872 he was an associate professor of neuropathology at the University of Breslau.

Discoveries Auerbach was among the first physicians to diagnose the nervous system using histological staining methods. He published a number of papers on neuropathological problems and muscle-related disorders. He is credited with the discovery of Plexus myentericus Auerbachi, or Auerbach's plexus, a layer of ganglion cells that provide control of movements of the gastro-intestinal tract, also known as the "myenteric plexus". "Friedreich–Auerbach disease" is named after Auerbach and pathologist Nikolaus Friedreich (1825–1882). It is a rare disease characterized by hemi-hypertrophy of the facial features, tongue, and tonsils.

Family Auerbach died in Breslau. His son Felix Auerbach was a renowned physicist, while his son Friedrich Auerbach was a chemist. Friedrich’s daughter Charlotte Auerbach was a geneticist.

Bibliography Ueber Percussion der Muskeln; in: Zeitschrift für rationelle Medizin, Leipzig and Heidelberg 1862. Bau der Blut- und Lymph-Capillaren; in: Centralblatt für die medicinischen Wissenschaften, Berlin, 1865. Lymphgefässe des Darms; in: [Virchows] Archiv für pathologische Anatomie und Physiologie und für klinische Medicin, Berlin, 1865. volume 33. Wahre Muskelhypertrophie; in: [Virchows] Archiv für pathologische Anatomie und Physiologie und für klinische Medicin, Berlin, 1871, volume 53. Leopold Auerbach (1923). Organologische Studien. Zur Charakteristik und Lebensgeschichte der Zellkerne, Volumes 1–2. Nabu Press. p. 296. ISBN 1294240250. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)

See also German inventors and discoverers

Sources Leopold Auerbach @ Who Named It

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Leopold Auerbach

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Leopold Auerbach claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Leopold Auerbach before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Leopold Auerbach ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Leopold Auerbach

In research: Leopold Auerbach appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Leopold Auerbach in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Leopold Auerbach is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1828 births, 1897 deaths, Academic staff of the University of Breslau, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Leopold Auerbach outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Leopold Auerbach in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Leopold Auerbach means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Leopold Auerbach out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Leopold Auerbach in simple terms?

Why does Leopold Auerbach matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Leopold Auerbach?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Leopold Auerbach.