doctoral_advisor death_date death_place birth_place image_size doctoral_students field work_institutions birth_date known_for residence image article_title name alma_mater
gerard van swieten february 11 , 1803 vienna saulgau 220px joseph barth physician university of vienna february 21 , 1731 research into herbs austria anton von störck 2.jpg anton von störck
 anton von störck university of vienna
anton von störck

anton von störck was an austrian physician -lrb- february 21 , 1731 -- february 11 , 1803 -rrb- who was a native of saulgau in upper swabia .
both of störck 's parents died when he was young , and he spent his early years as an orphan in a viennese poorhouse .
he studied medicine under gerard van swieten in vienna , and received his degree in 1757 .
he rose through the academic ranks at the university of vienna , and would later become deacon of the medical faculty and rector at the university .
in 1767 he treated empress maria theresa of austria for smallpox , and after her recovery he became her personal physician .
störck is remembered for his clinical research of various herbs , and their associated toxicity and medicinal properties .
his studies are considered to be the pioneering work of experimental pharmacology and his method can be regarded as forming a blueprint for the clinical trials of modern medicine .
he was convinced that plants regarded as poisonous still had medicinal applications if employed in carefully controlled quantities .
störck was particularly interested in the medical possibilities of plants such as hemlock , henbane , jimsonweed and autumn crocus .
his experiments with these plants involved a three-step process ; initially used on animals , followed by a personal trial , and finally given to his patients , all the while maintaining a `` sliding-scale '' approach to determine the optimum dosage .
in 1758 , störck became ` first physician ' to the vienna urban institute for the poor .
from 1764 he was physician to emperor franz i. stephan of frankfurt am maine and the dukes joseph and leopold .
he was a member of numerous european scientific societies and was made a baron in 1775 .
his brother matthias , also a doctor , became ` body physician ' to the grand duke of toskana and was also made a baron in 1779 .
störck 's numerous latin medical tracts , detailing his experiments into the therapeutic effects of poisonous plants , excited great interest and were translated into german , french , english , dutch and portuguese , rapidly becoming influential medical texts throughout europe .
berthold seemann named `` elaeocarpus storckii '' in his honour .
