Vilém Laufberger and Czech and Slovak sciences
It is a pleasure for me to have a possibility to open the session conserved to the memory of Prof. Laufberger. As an introduction, let me present shortly some important facts of his scientific live.
First scientific discovery of Prof. Laufberger was (in 1913) a demonstration of importance of thyroid hormone by metamorphosis of amphibis (neotenic form of Amblyostoma mexicanum, now Siredon mexicanum) not existing in nature. In 1923, by instantaneous (explosive) cytolysis - studying the cellular functional structure - was successful in obtention of mitochondria suspension and cellular stroma (cytoskeleton). In 1924 become one of few scientists in the world that time isolating insulin. Experimentally proved his theory of glycogen blockade mechanism of insulin function. In 1934 as a pioneer of scientific field from which many years later was constituted the molecular biology, he discovered ferritine.
His scientific activity was interrupted by 1st and 2nd World War, last one with occupation of Czechoslovakia and closing of Czech university connected with impossibility of experimental research. In 2nd World War period his activity was fully transferred, to the neurophysiology. He developed his - Impulse Theory, published in 1947, based on multilevel hierarchical organization of nervous system including high nervous activity. This way one year before Wiener's "Cybernetics" were published the main cybernetic principles and created theoretical basis of scientific field that constituted many years later the psychophysiology and neurocybernetics.
Starting 1951 Laufberger scientific activity was concentrated (focused) on physiology and biophysics of human electrical field of the heart.
He developed individually corrected VCG system of leads based on mirror image ECG's founded by stepwise closing the Lissajous curves under the control on the scope screen. Amplitudes of these ECG's have been corrected using the Laufberger's mathematical formula based on the dependence of potential value of electrical field within the infinite homogeneous volume conductor and on the knowledge of mirror image ECG's anatomical distance and peak potential of these ECG's.
In relation with developing the VCG system of axes Laufberger - in that time originally
- defined the origin of electrical field of the heart as point at which the source of the field is situated from point of view of body surface potential distribution time development;
- solved the problem of biophysic interpretation of the vectorcardiograms by his term "cardial" as a trajectory of instantaneous potential maxima in cardiac electrical field space during the electrical systole;
- and developed original method of visualization of trajectory of end points of instantaneous vectors in space - the spatiocardiography;
In last decade of his active scientific life Laufberger returned to biocybernetics - long series of his papers was consacred to the application of cybernetic principles in evaluation of vectorcardiographic interpretation of electrical field of the heart.
In these few words I may only to present short listing of main facts of Laufberger scientific personality.
I hope this will be an inspiration for other speakers to more detailed contributions to comemorate Prof. Laufberger not only as famous physiologist but to comemorize Laufberger's role in development of Czech and Slovak sciences at all and also his role in development of international electrocardiology.
I. Ruttkay, E. Kellerova, R. Koechlin
11.9.1990