HERTWIG, OSCAR. – Born at Friedberg on 21 Apr. 1849, died in Berlin on 25 Oct. 1922. He was a pupil of Haeckel and graduated in medicine at Bonn in 1871.
He carried out very important embryological studies on germinal phenomena, which led him to a serious critique of the fundamental biogenetic law of his master and to the formulation of the theory of the coelom. He conducted fundamental research on cell division, on fertilization (1875: importance of the fusion of the two pronuclei) and on gametogenesis (1890). He was among the first to cultivate the study of experimental morphology; among the numerous researches in this field, mention should be made of the monograph on the action of X-rays on germ cells and on the development of embryos (1911).
His most notable work is: Allgemeine Biologie (Jena 1906).