Ernest Starling and the discovery of secretin

The demonstration by Bayliss and Starling that acid liberates a chemical me ssenger from the cells of the duodenal and jejunal mucosa and that this, by traveling through the blood, excites the pancreas to secrete revolutionize d physiology. It subsequently provided the impetus to establish endocrinolo gy as a specialist field in medicine. Together, their contributions to phys iology covered a vast sphere of knowledge, ranging from hormones to the hea rt and from enzymes to osmotic forces. Every subject that they studied was augmented by their efforts, and their lucid scientific writing brought both clarity and organization to the field of physiological endeavor throughout the world. Both contributed in a very definite way to crystallizing physio logy into a rigorous scientific discipline and their respective texts the " Principles of General Physiology" (Bayliss) and the "Principles of Human Ph syiology" (Starling) established a framework of thought that for decades re mained the lodestar of physiological science. As mentors, they devoted them selves to aspirant physiologists from all parts of the world, and their ded ication to the activities of the Physiological Society in London was legend ary. Indeed from 1896, when Starling became secretary, until the death of B ayliss in 1924, the two ran this august body in one capacity or another fur more than a quarter of a century. There is little doubt that the felicitou s collaboration that led to the discovery of secretin and the introduction of the concept of chemical messengers represents an advance that not only r evolutionized physiological thought but the entire Face of clinical medicin e.