What was the references for the year people who discovered and place where they discovered the outline of the functions and position of the structural components, i.e. vessels, tissues and organs involved in draining of lymph into the blood.
The lymphatic system's discovery and subsequent understanding of its functions in draining lymph into the blood can be attributed to several scientists and physicians over many centuries. It is not a discovery that can be pinned down to a specific year or a single group of individuals. However, a few notable historical milestones mark our understanding of the lymphatic system:
1. Hippocrates (460-370 BC) and subsequent ancient Greek physicians had some understanding of the lymphatic system, particularly the existence of lymph nodes.
2. Rufus of Ephesus, in the 1st century AD, described vessels resembling the lymphatics.
3. The actual discovery of the lymphatic system is attributed to the Italian physician Gaspare Aselli, who in 1622, while conducting experiments on dogs, identified the lacteal vessels in the mesentery, which are part of the lymphatic system. These absorb digested fats and transport them to the venous blood via the thoracic duct.
4. Thomas Bartholin, a Danish anatomist, and his father Caspar Bartholin the Elder significantly contributed to the understanding of the lymphatic system in the mid-17th century. Thomas Bartholin's publication "Vasa Lymphatica" in 1652 further described the lymphatic system.
5. Olof Rudbeck, a Swedish scientist, and Thomas Bartholin were in competition, both claiming the discovery of the lymphatic system independently. Rudbeck had also discovered and published his works on the lymphatic system in the mid-17th century.
6. Marcello Malpighi, an Italian biologist and physician, in the 17th century, made contributions to understanding the smaller lymphatic vessels and capillaries.
Over time, the work of these and other scientists led to the detailed understanding of the lymph system that we have today. Researchers continued to elaborate on the function and structure of the lymphatic network, including its role in immunity, disease, and the transport of lymph fluid from tissues into the venous circulation.
These discoveries were not isolated to a single place but spanned across various European countries where anatomy and physiology were being studied intensively during the Renaissance and subsequent eras.
Scientific understanding continued to evolve, and it wasn't until the 20th century that techniques improved to allow better visualization and clarification of the fine anatomy of the lymphatic system. The discovery of lymphatic endothelial markers and imaging techniques in more recent years, such as lymphoscintigraphy and near-infrared fluorescence imaging, has considerably advanced our understanding of lymphatic function and structure.