Karl Landsteiner

Karl Landsteiner (June 14, 1868 – June 26, 1943), was an Austrian biologist and physician. He is noted for having distinguished the main blood groups in 1900, having developed the modern system of classification of blood groups from his identification of the presence of agglutinins in the blood, and having identified, with Alexander S. Wiener, the Rhesus factor, in 1937, thus enabling physicians to transfuse blood without endangering the patient's life.

Early life and education[edit | edit source]

Landsteiner was born in Vienna, Austria. His father, Leopold Landsteiner, a renowned Viennese journalist and newspaper publisher, died at age 44, when Karl was only six years old. This led to a close relationship between him and his mother, Fanny Hess. He studied medicine at the University of Vienna, graduating in 1891.

Career[edit | edit source]

After graduating, Landsteiner began his medical career in the pathological-anatomical department of the Vienna General Hospital. He published his discovery of the blood groups in the Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift on November 1, 1901. In 1930, he received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of human blood groups.

Death and legacy[edit | edit source]

Landsteiner died in 1943 and was buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Newark, New Jersey. His work continues to form the basis for modern medical procedures such as blood transfusions and organ transplants.

References[edit | edit source]

External links[edit | edit source]

Nobel Prize Biography

Karl Landsteiner Resources
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