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J. S. Steward

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J. S. Steward
FRCVS DVSM
Born
John Stanbury Steward

(1906-12-28)28 December 1906
Hereford, England
Died18 September 1994(1994-09-18) (aged 87)
Nottingham, England
Occupations
  • Veterinary scientist
  • pathologist
  • surgeon
Awards
Academic background
EducationHereford Cathedral School
Alma materRoyal Veterinary College
University of Edinburgh
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
University of Cambridge
Academic work
School or tradition
InstitutionsImperial Chemical Industries
Main interests

John Stanbury Steward (28 December 1906 – 18 September 1994) was an English biologist and veterinary scientist specialising in mammalogy, chemical pathology and microbiology.

Early life and education

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Steward was born in Hereford, England, on 28 December 1906.[1] He was the eldest son of Francis Victor Steward, a veterinary inspector and surgeon, and Elsie Mary Havill. His grandfather was John Alfred Steward JP, chairman of the Worcester Theatre Royal and director of the Worcester Gas Company who was twice Mayor of Worcester.[2]

From 1921 to 1924, Steward attended Hereford Cathedral School, an independent boarding and day school. He attended the Royal Veterinary College from 1924 to 1928,[3] winning the Royal Agricultural Society's silver medal for cattle pathology, the Royal Veterinary Medical Association's gold medal, and the Centenary Prize.[4] He gained a diploma in veterinary medicine from the University of Edinburgh, which he attended from 1928 to 1929. In 1930, he enrolled at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and gained a Ministry of Agriculture research scholarship in veterinary pathology from the University of Cambridge.[5][1]

Career

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Steward was a member of the Colonial Services Club, Cambridge.[1] He was elected a member of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club in 1954,[6] and from 1964 to 1965 was president of the Central Veterinary Society.[7]

While studying the infection of horses by strongyle worm in 1932, Steward found it existed in the diseased tendon tissues of the withers of farm colts.[8]

In 1933, Steward was successful in establishing that the worm Onchocerca cervicalis Railliet and Henry is transmitted by Culicoides nubeculosus and probably by another species of Culicoides. This worm is the principal cause of fistulous withers and poll evil in horses.[9][10]

A 1936 study of the life history of Brucella abortus by Steward revealed that adult forms of the parasite are common in the neck ligament, while embryos are found in the skin of this region. They develop in the midge's body in the course of about 24 to 25 days, and are then capable of infecting horses.[11]

As a member of the Royal Society of Medicine, Steward believed that "the limitations and the great potentialities of veterinary inspection of dairy stock were scarcely appreciated." He proposed to the society in 1944 that, in the interest of public health, more should be done to educate the public by the Ministry of Health and to improve the safety of milk supply by the Ministry of Agriculture.[12]

In 1945, Steward recorded malignant edema, a rapidly fatal wound infection likely due to Clostridium septicum, in swine for the first time in Great Britain.[13]

In 1951, Steward announced the preliminary results of his application of Gammexane, an organochlorine chemical, to arthropods considered of veterinary importance. The results being promising, he concluded that "Among the synthetic insecticides Gammexane is outstanding in acaricidal activity, and this important veterinary use is being investigated further."[14][15]

Regarding human interactions, Steward proposed the marsh rice rat as a model organism in 1951 to study certain infections to which other rodents used at the time are not susceptible.[16] With Imperial Chemical Industries in 1952, he imported a dozen swamp rats from Florida to test the effectiveness of new drugs. These, he believed, would be more effective than the cotton rats often used "because they are considerably smaller".[17]

In 1955, Steward wrote four articles on anthelmintic studies for the peer-reviewed scientific journal Parasitology, each focusing on a different approach to chemical testing.[18]

After leaving Imperial Chemical Industries, Steward acquired a veterinary practice at 68 St James' Street, a Grade II* listed building in Nottingham, where he practised as Evershed, Smythe & Steward.

Personal life

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Steward resided at Gwynne House, Gwynne Street, Hereford and later Inkersall Manor, Bilsthorpe.[19]

Select publications

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Bales-White, J. C. (1931). Records OF Hereford Cathedral School (PDF). MESSRS. WILSON & PHILLIPS. pp. 12, 111.
  2. ^ "Steward's Chemist Shop". Museums Worcestershire. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  3. ^ Veterinary Science - two manuscript academic notebooks of J.S. Steward in Easy Live Auction
  4. ^ Pretyman, E. G. (12 December 1928). "Medals for Cattle Pathology". The Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England. 89: 282. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  5. ^ "Miscellaneous Notes". Journal of the Ministry of Agriculture. xxxvii: 629. 1930. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  6. ^ "Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club (Herefordshire)" (PDF). Transactions of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field. XXXIV: xlvii. 1955. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  7. ^ Past Presidents of the Central Veterinary Society
  8. ^ Davies, W. Morley (1932). "Medals for Cattle Pathology". Annual Report for 1932 of Royal Veterinary College. 93: 360. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  9. ^ Edwards, F. W.; Oldroyd, H.; Smart, J. (1939). British Blood-Sucking Flies. Internet Archive: The British Museum. p. 28.
  10. ^ "Veterinary medicine". Experiment Station Record. 74. 1936. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  11. ^ Shears, R.T. (1936). "Diseases of Animals: Prevention and Treatment". The Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England. 97: 200. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  12. ^ Proceedings Of The Royal Society Of Medicine(38). Internet Archive: Digital Library of India. 1944. pp. 18–19.
  13. ^ "Veterinary medicine". Experiment Station Record. 92. 1945. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  14. ^ Ford, J. H. (1951). Chemical Control Of Insects. Internet Archive: Chapman & Hall. p. 177.
  15. ^ STEWARD JS (1946). "Application of 'Gammexane' to Arthropods of Veterinary Importance". Nature. 158 (4018): 636–637. Bibcode:1946Natur.158..636S. doi:10.1038/158636a0. PMID 21002753. S2CID 32314214. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  16. ^ Steward, J.S. 1951. The swamp rice rat (Oryzomys palustris natator) as a possible laboratory animal for special purposes (subscription required). The Journal of Hygiene 49(4):427–429.
  17. ^ "Florida Rats Help Fight Disease in Britain". Science News-Letter. 61 (4): 51. 26 January 1952. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  18. ^ Steward, J. S. (1 November 1955). "Anthelmintic studies. I. A controlled critical entero-nemacidal test". Parasitology. 45 (3–4): 231–241. doi:10.1017/S0031182000027608. PMID 13280264. S2CID 25173175.
  19. ^ Steward, J. S. (September 1964). "On the Importance of the Base in the Formulation of Anthelmintics". Proceedings of the First International Congress of Parasitology. Vol. 1. Pergamon. p. 80. doi:10.1016/B978-1-4832-2913-3.50079-4. ISBN 9781483229133. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
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