Editing Francesco Redi

{{Short description|Italian naturalist and poet}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox scientist
| honorific_prefix  =
| name              = Francesco Redi
| image             = Francesco Redi, founder of experimental biology.jpg
| caption           = Portrait by [[Jacob Ferdinand Voet]]
| birth_date        = {{birth date|1626|2|18|df=y}}
| birth_place       = [[Arezzo]], [[Grand Duchy of Tuscany]]
| death_date        = {{death date and age|1697|3|1|1626|2|18|df=y}}
| death_place       = [[Pisa]], Grand Duchy of Tuscany
| nationality       = [[Tuscany|Tuscan]]
| fields            = [[Medicine]], [[entomology]], [[parasitology]], [[linguistics]]
| workplaces        =
| alma_mater        = [[University of Pisa]]
| known_for         = [[Experimental biology]]<br> [[Parasitology]]<br> Criticism of [[spontaneous generation]]
}}
'''Francesco Redi''' (18 February 1626 – 1 March 1697) was an [[Italians|Italian]] [[physician]], [[naturalist]], [[biologist]], and [[poet]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Francesco Redi|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/494690/Francesco-Redi|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.|access-date=22 October 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023061806/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/494690/Francesco-Redi|archive-date=23 October 2013}}</ref> He is referred to as the "founder of [[experimental biology]]",<ref name= lei>{{cite journal |author= Leikola A|title= Francesco Redi as a pioneer of experimental biology|journal= Lychnos Lardomshist Samf Arsb |volume=1977-78 |issue= 1–3| pages=115–122|year=1977–78 |pmid=11628017}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |pmid=11625103 |year=1997 |last1=Ioli |first1=A |last2=Petithory |first2=JC |last3=Théodoridès |first3=J |title=Francesco Redi and the birth of experimental parasitology |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=61–6 |journal=Histoire des sciences médicales }}</ref> and as the "father of modern [[parasitology]]".<ref name=ami>{{cite journal|author= Roncalli Amici R|title= The history of Italian parasitology|url= http://his.library.nenu.edu.cn/upload/soft/haoli/114/367.pdf|journal= Veterinary Parasitology|volume= 98|issue= 1–3|pages= 3–10|year= 2001|pmid= 11516576|doi= 10.1016/S0304-4017(01)00420-4|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131023060404/http://his.library.nenu.edu.cn/upload/soft/haoli/114/367.pdf|archive-date= 23 October 2013}}</ref><ref name=mehl>{{cite book|author= Mehlhorn H|title= Encyclopedia of Parasitology, Volumes 1-2|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Jpg1ysgVn-AC|journal= Veterinary Parasitology|pages= 610|edition= 3|year= 2008|publisher= Springer-Verlag|isbn= 978-3540489948|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160624061656/https://books.google.com/books?id=Jpg1ysgVn-AC&pg|archive-date= 24 June 2016}}</ref> He was the first person to challenge the theory of [[spontaneous generation]] by demonstrating that [[maggot]]s come from eggs of [[fly|flies]].<ref name=lev>{{cite web |vauthors=Levine R, Evers C |title=The Slow Death of Spontaneous Generation (1668-1859) |url=http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/AB/BC/Spontaneous_Generation.php |access-date=18 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080426191204/http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/AB/BC/Spontaneous_Generation.php |archive-date=26 April 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.scientus.org/Redi-Galileo.html|title=Francesco Redi and Controlled Experiments|website=www.scientus.org|access-date=2018-12-10}}</ref>

Having a doctoral degree in both [[medicine]] and [[philosophy]] from the [[University of Pisa]] at the age of 21, he worked in various cities of Italy. A rationalist of his time, he was a critic of verifiable myths, such as spontaneous generation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/itineraries/biography/FrancescoRedi.html|title=Francesco Redi|date=27 February 2008|website=brunelleschi.imss.fi.it|language=EN|access-date=2018-12-10}}</ref> His most famous experiments are described in his [[Masterpiece|magnum opus]] ''Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti'' (''Experiments on the Generation of Insects''), published in 1668. He disproved that [[vipers]] drink wine and could break glasses and that their venom was poisonous when ingested. He correctly observed that snake venoms were produced from the [[fangs]], not the [[gallbladder]], as was believed. He was also the first to recognize and correctly describe details of about 180 [[parasites]], including ''[[Fasciola hepatica]]'' and ''[[Ascaris lumbricoides]]''. He also distinguished [[earthworms]] from [[helminths]] (like tapeworms, flukes, and roundworms). He possibly originated the use of the [[Scientific control|control]], the basis of [[experimental design]] in modern biology. A collection of his poems first published in 1685 ''Bacco in Toscana'' (''Bacchus in Tuscany'') is considered among the finest works of 17th-century Italian poetry, and for which the Grand Duke [[Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany|Cosimo III]] gave him a medal of honour.

==Biography==
[[File:Doctor Francesco Redi.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Doctor Redi]]
The son of Gregorio Redi and Cecilia de Ghinci, Francesco Redi was born in [[Arezzo]] on 18 February 1626. His father was a renowned physician at [[Florence]]. After schooling with the [[Jesuits]], Francesco Redi attended the [[University of Pisa]] from where he obtained his doctoral degrees in medicine and philosophy in 1647, at the age of 21.<ref name= ami /> He constantly moved, to [[Rome]], [[Naples]], [[Bologna]], [[Padua]], and [[Venice]], and finally settled in Florence in 1648. Here he was registered at the ''Collegio Medico'' where he served at the Medici Court as both the head physician and superintendent of the ducal [[apothecary]] to [[Ferdinando II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany]] and his successor, [[Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany|Cosimo III]]. It is here that most of his academic works were achieved, which earned him membership in [[Accademia dei Lincei]]. He was also a member of the [[Accademia del Cimento]] (Academy of Experiment) from 1657 to 1667.<ref name=haw>{{cite journal |author= Hawgood BJ |title= Francesco Redi (1626-1697): Tuscan philosopher, physician and poet| journal= Journal of Medical Biography |year=2003| volume=11 |issue=1 |pages= 28–34 |pmid= 12522497|doi= 10.1177/096777200301100108|s2cid= 23575162}}</ref>

He died in his sleep on 1 March 1697 in Pisa and his remains were returned to Arezzo for interment.<ref name=bigelow>{{cite book |author= Francesco Redi of Arezzo |editor= Mab Bigelow (translation and notes) |title= Experiments on the Generation of Insects |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=w7ZRAAAAMAAJ&q=Francesco+Redi+experiment |access-date= 2 March 2010 |orig-year= 1668 |year= 1909 |publisher= Open Court |location= Chicago|isbn= 9780527744007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author= Francesco Redi of Arezzo |editor= Leigh Hunt (translation and notes) |title= Bacchus in Tuscany |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=iE8sAAAAMAAJ |access-date= 2 March 2010 |orig-year= 1685 |year= 1825 |publisher= Printed by J. C. Kelly for John and H. L. Hunt |location= London}}</ref>

A collection of his letters is held at the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, Maryland.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://oculus.nlm.nih.gov/redi|title=Francesco Redi Letters 1683-1693|publisher=National Library of Medicine}}</ref>

==Scientific career==

===Experimental toxicology===
In 1664 Redi wrote his first monumental work ''Osservazioni intorno alle vipere'' (''Observations on Vipers'') to his friend Lorenzo Magalotti, secretary of the ''Accademia del Cimento''. In this he began to break the prevailing scientific myths (which he called "unmasking of the untruths") such as [[vipers]] drink wine and shatter glasses, their [[venom]] is poisonous if swallowed, the head of the dead viper is an [[antidote]], the viper's venom is produced from the [[gallbladder]], and so on. He explained rather how snake venom is unrelated to the snake’s bite, an idea contrary to popular belief.<ref>{{cite book |author= Francesco Redi |editor= Knoefel PK |title= Francesco Redi on Vipers |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=5w8VAAAAIAAJ |access-date= 18 April 2013 |year= 1988 |publisher= E.J. Brill |location= Leiden, the Netherlands |pages= 11–17 |isbn= 9004089489 |url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160430040248/https://books.google.com/books?id=5w8VAAAAIAAJ&pg |archive-date= 30 April 2016 }}</ref> He performed a series of experiments on the effects of snakebites and demonstrated that venom was poisonous only when it enters the [[blood circulation|bloodstream]] via a bite, and that the [[fang]] contains venom in the form of yellow fluid.<ref name=haw/><ref name=hab>{{cite journal |author= Habermehl GG|title= Francesco Redi¬—life and work|year= 1994 |volume=32 |issue=4  |pages=411–417|pmid=8052995 |doi=10.1016/0041-0101(94)90292-5 |journal= Toxicon|bibcode= 1994Txcn...32..411H}}</ref> He even showed that by applying a tight [[ligature (medicine)|ligature]] before the wound, the passage of venom into the [[heart]] could be prevented. This work marked the beginning of experimental [[toxinology]]/[[toxicology]].<ref>{{cite book |author= Buettner KA |title= Francesco Redi (The Embryo Project Encyclopedia ) |url= http://embryo.asu.edu/view/embryo:124758 |access-date= 18 April 2013 |year= 2007 |issn= 1940-5030 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100619034436/http://embryo.asu.edu/view/embryo:124758 |archive-date= 19 June 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |vauthors=Hayes AN, Gilbert SG |title= Molecular, Clinical and Environmental Toxicology|chapter= Historical milestones and discoveries that shaped the toxicology sciences| journal= EXS|year=2009| volume=99 |issue=1 |pages= 1–35|pmid= 19157056 |doi=10.1007/978-3-7643-8336-7_1|series= Experientia Supplementum|isbn= 978-3-7643-8335-0}}</ref>

===Entomology and spontaneous generation===
{{Main| Spontaneous generation}}
[[File:Francesco Redi Esperienze intorno alla Generazione degli Insetti.jpg|thumb|upright|''Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti'' frontcover]]

Redi is best known for his series of [[experiment]]s, published in 1668 as ''Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti'' (''Experiments on the Generation of Insects''), which is regarded as his masterpiece and a milestone in the history of modern science. The book is one of the first steps in refuting "[[spontaneous generation]]"—a theory also known as Aristotelian [[abiogenesis]]. At the time, the prevailing wisdom was that [[maggot]]s arose spontaneously from rotting meat.<ref name=lev/>

[[File:Esperimento abiogenesi.jpg|thumb|left| A modern rendering of Redi's experiment on abiogenesis]]

Redi took six jars and divided them into two groups of three: In one experiment, in the first jar of each group, he put an unknown object; in the second, a dead fish; in the last, a raw chunk of [[veal]]. Redi covered the tops of the first group of jars with fine [[gauze]] so that only air could get into them. He left the other group open. After several days, he saw maggots appear on the objects in the open jars, on which flies had been able to land, but not in the gauze-covered jars. In the second experiment, meat was kept in three jars. One of the jars was uncovered, and two of the jars were covered, one with cork and the other one with gauze. Flies could only enter the uncovered jar, and in this, maggots appeared. In the jar that was covered with gauze, maggots appeared on the gauze but did not survive.<ref>{{cite web |title= Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti fatte da Francesco Redi |author= Redi F |url= http://fermi.imss.fi.it/rd/bdv?/bdviewer/bid=323861 |url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120903004256/http://fermi.imss.fi.it/rd/bdv?%2Fbdviewer%2Fbid=323861 |archive-date= 3 September 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author= Barnett B |title= Francesco Redi and Spontaneous Generation |url= http://www.pasteurbrewing.com/Articles/spontaneous-generation/francesco-redi-and-spontaneous-generation.html |access-date= 18 April 2013 |date= 30 September 2011 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130523144406/http://www.pasteurbrewing.com/Articles/spontaneous-generation/francesco-redi-and-spontaneous-generation.html |archive-date= 23 May 2013 }}</ref>

[[File:Francesco Redi Esperienze intorno alla Generazione degli Insetti Mosca della Ciliegia.jpg|thumb|upright|Illustration from Rediʼs ''Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti'']]

Redi continued his experiments by capturing the maggots and waiting for them to metamorphose, which they did, becoming flies. Also, when dead flies or maggots were put in sealed jars with dead animals or veal, no maggots appeared, but when the same thing was done with living flies, maggots did. His interpretations were always based on biblical passages, such as his famous adage: ''omne vivum ex vivo'' ("All life comes from life").<ref name= ami/><ref>{{cite journal |author= Gottdenker P|title= Francesco Redi and the fly experiments| journal= Bull Hist Med |year=1979| volume=53 |issue=4 |pages= 575–592 |pmid= 397843}}</ref>

===Parasitology===
Redi was the first to describe [[ectoparasites]] in his ''Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti''. His notable illustrations in the book are those relevant to [[ticks]], including deer ticks and tiger ticks; it also contains the first depiction of the larva of [[Cephenemyiinae]], the nasal flies of deer, as well as the sheep liver fluke (''[[Fasciola hepatica]]''). His next [[treatise]] in 1684 titled ''Osservazioni intorno agli animali viventi che si trovano negli animali viventi'' (''Observations on Living Animals, that are in Living Animals'') recorded the descriptions and the illustrations of more than 100 parasites. In it, he also differentiates the [[earthworm]] (generally regarded as a [[helminth]]) and ''[[Ascaris lumbricoides]]'', the human roundworm. An important innovation from the book is his experiments in [[pharmacology|chemotherapy]] in which he employed the "[[scientific control|control]]"', the basis of [[experimental design]] in modern biological research.<ref name= lei/><ref name= ami/><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Ioli A, Petithory JC, Théodoridès J |title= Francesco Redi and the birth of experimental parasitology| journal= Hist Sci Med |year=1997| volume=31 |issue=1 |pages= 61–66 |pmid= 11625103}}</ref> He described some 180 species of parasites. Perhaps, his most significant observation was that parasites produce eggs and develop from them, which contradicted the prevailing opinion that they are produced spontaneously.<ref>{{cite book |vauthors=Bush AO, Fernández JC, Esch GW, Seed JR |title=Parasitism: The Diversity and Ecology of Animal Parasites |url=https://archive.org/details/parasitismdivers0000unse|url-access=registration |year= 2001 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location= Cambridge, UK| page= [https://archive.org/details/parasitismdivers0000unse/page/4 4]| isbn=0521664470}}</ref>
[[File:Francesco Redi-Uffizi.jpg|thumb|upright| Statue of Francesco Redi on the Uffizi Gallery (Piazzale degli Uffizi) in Florence. At his feet is a copy of ''Bacco in Toscana''.]]

==Literary career==
As a [[poet]], Redi is best known for the [[dithyramb]] ''Bacco in Toscana'' (''[[Bacchus]] in Tuscany''), which first appeared in 1685. His bacchanalian poem in praise of [[Tuscan wine]]s is still read in Italy today.<ref name=haw/> He was admitted to two literary societies: the [[Academy of Arcadia]] and the ''[[Accademia della Crusca]]''.<ref name=bigelow /> He was an active member of Crusca and supported the preparation of the [[Vocabolario degli Accademici della Crusca|Tuscan dictionary]].<ref>{{CE1913|wstitle=Francesco Redi|inline=1}}</ref> He taught the Tuscan language as a ''lettore pubblico di lingua toscana'' in Florence in 1666. He also composed many other literary works, including his ''Letters'', and ''Arianna Inferma''.<ref name=haw/>

==Eponyms==
* [[Redi (crater)|Redi]], a [[impact crater|crater]] on [[Mars]] was named in his honor.<ref>{{cite web |author=SpaceRef |title=NASA Mars Odyssey THEMIS Image: Promethei Terra |url=http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=13674 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630083835/http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=13674 |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 June 2013 |date=14 August 2004 |access-date=18 April 2013 }}</ref>
* The [[Trematode lifecycle stages|larval stage of parasitic fluke]] called "redia" is named after Redi by another Italian zoologist, [[Filippo de Filippi]], in 1837.<ref name= ami/>
* The [[Redi Award]], the most prestigious award in toxinology, is given in his honour by the [[International Society on Toxinology]]. The award is made at each World Congress of IST (generally held every three years) since 1967.<ref name=hab /><ref>{{cite web |author= International Society on Toxinology |title= IST Redi Awards |url= http://www.toxinology.org/IST_RediAward.htm |access-date= 18 April 2013 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131004220434/http://www.toxinology.org/IST_RediAward.htm |archive-date= 4 October 2013 }}</ref>
* A scientific journal ''Redia'', an Italian journal of zoology, is named in his honour, which was first published in 1903.<ref>{{cite web|author= REDIA – Journal of Zoology|title= History|url= http://www.redia.it/storia|access-date= 18 April 2013|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131004220638/http://www.redia.it/storia|archive-date= 4 October 2013}}</ref>
* A European [[Viperinae|viper]] [[subspecies]], ''[[Vipera aspis francisciredi]]'' [[Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti|Laurenti]], 1768, is named after him.<ref name="ITIS">{{ITIS |id=635253 |taxon=''Vipera aspis francisciredi'' |access-date=2 May 2015}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Parasitology]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book
|title= Lingua e cultura di Francesco Redi, medico
|author1=Altieri Biagi |author2=Maria Luisa |publisher= L. S. Olschki
|year= 1968
|author-link= Maria Luisa Altieri Biagi
|location= Florence
|asin=B00A30Z37W
|ref=Reference-Altieri Biagi-1968}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://archive.org/details/experimentsonge00bigegoog <!-- quote=Francesco Redi experimen. --> ''Experiments on the Generation of Insects'', translation of the 5th edition (1688)]
* ''[http://www.classicitaliani.it/seicento/Redi_Bacco_in_Toscana.htm Bacco in Toscana]'' {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930185503/http://www.classicitaliani.it/seicento/Redi_Bacco_in_Toscana.htm |date=30 September 2011 }} (English translation: ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=iE8sAAAAMAAJ Bacchus in Tuscany]'')
* [http://katringale.wikispaces.com/B1,+Aiken,+Margaret,+Francesco+Redi Biography at Katringale]
* [http://www.francesco-redi.com/ Biographical Website of Francesco Redi]
* [http://faculty.sdmiramar.edu/dtrubovitz/micro/history/Redi.html Rediʼs Experiment] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004223001/http://faculty.sdmiramar.edu/dtrubovitz/micro/history/Redi.html |date=4 October 2013 }}
* [http://galileo.rice.edu/Catalog/NewFiles/redi.html Francisco Redi at the Galileo Project]
* [http://www.kettererkunst.com/bio/francesco-redi-1626.shtml Francisco Redi at Ketterer Kunst]
* [http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Francesco+Redi Francisco Redi at The Free Dictionary]
* [http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/people/redi-francesco.html Francisco Redi at Infoplease]
* [http://birthstory.net/history/spontaneous-generation-and-francesco-redi/ Spontaneous generation and Francesco Redi] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004215837/http://birthstory.net/history/spontaneous-generation-and-francesco-redi/ |date=4 October 2013 }}
* [http://www.scientus.org/Redi-Galileo.html Galileo's Twin]

{{History of biology}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Redi, Francesco}}
[[Category:1626 births]]
[[Category:1697 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Arezzo]]
[[Category:17th-century Italian physicians]]
[[Category:Italian entomologists]]
[[Category:Italian Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:17th-century Italian poets]]
[[Category:Italian male poets]]
[[Category:University of Pisa alumni]]
[[Category:17th-century Italian scientists]]
[[Category:Empiricists]]
[[Category:Members of the Academy of Arcadians]]
[[Category:Italian parasitologists]]
[[Category:Italian biologists]]
[[Category:17th-century Italian male writers]]
[[Category:Toxinologists]]