August Krogh

Born Nov. 15, 1874, in Grenå, Jutland; died Sept. 13, 1949, in Copenhagen. Danish physiologist.

Krogh was a professor at the University of Copenhagen (1916–45). He first described the anatomical and physiological characteristics of the capillary wall in various organs and showed the significance of capillary blood circulation for metabolism. He studied the dependence between the condition of the capillaries and the activity of organs; he did research in the role of ions in the life activities of cells and the permeability of biological membranes. He produced works on comparative physiology of respiration and the physiology of muscle activity in man. He developed a number of physiological methods, including microtonometry, differential manometry, and determination of the volume of blood per minute pumped by man’s heart. He was awarded a Nobel Prize in 1920.