Abstract

MARQUINEZ-CASAS, Xavier; MUNOZ-DURAN, Joao  and  USAQUEN-MARTINEZ, William. Cellular theory in the botanical courses of Francisco Bayon in the Universidad Nacional De Colombia (1868-1875). Acta biol.Colomb. [online]. 2022, vol.27, n.2, pp.292-302.  Epub May 30, 2024. ISSN 0120-548X.  https://doi.org/10.15446/abc.v27n2.91424.

The foundation of the Universidad Nacional de los Estados Unidos de Colombia in 1867 took place almost a decade after the publication of Darwin's Origin of Species (1859) and Virchow's Die Cellularpathologie (1859). The first of these works presents the theory of evolution by natural selection, the second the cell theory, both of which underpin modern biology. The analysis of primary and secondary historical sources led us to determine that cell theory was taught in the School of Natural Sciences between 1868 and 1875. The botany course of Francisco Bayón (1868) explained the cell theory, including the proposals of Schleiden, Mirbel, Mohl and Unger; as well as the processes of pollination and fertilization in plants. Some topics were outdated, mainly by the fact that Bayón's main sources were texts edited in Spain and France, and by the absence of translations of the pioneering works that emerged in Germany. The School of Natural Sciences took a step further from natural history to modern biology by including the cell theory in their courses.

Keywords : Cell; history of botany; natural sciences; natural history; histology.

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