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Hooke
Hooke was the first person to discover the cell. Hooke discovered the cell was viewing a piece of cork under his microscope. Hooke thought that cells were completely empty. -
Leeuwenhoek
Leeuwenhoek discovered blood cells, sperm cells, protists, and bacteria. He discovered these items by studying fish blood using a microscope at 250x. Leeuwenhoek disproved that cells were empty, and noted that a substances called globules was found in the cells. -
Brown
Brown noticed that the pollen in the plants he was studying were moving in and out of a large oval found within the cell; he called this oval the nucleus. Brown discovered this oval by studying the cells of Asclepiads and orchids through his microscope. Brown proved that there were more complex features to be found within the cell than Leeuwenhoek thought, and that the nucleus was needed for fertilization. -
Schleiden
Schleiden declared plants were made of cells. He came up with this theory by drawing upon published information. Using all of the information available about cells, and conducting his own tests and experiments, Schleiden disproved the theory that non-living entities were also created by cells. -
Schwann
Schwann was the first to declare that all living things were made of cells. He came up with this theory in a similar fashion to Schleiden by drawing upon published information and conducting his own tests and experiments. Schwann disproved the theory that only certain materials were made of cells, and proved that plants cells are built differently than animal cells. -
Virchow
Using the information gained by all previous contributors to Cell Theory, and the stunning revelation that cells reproduce using division (discovered by Robert Remak), Virchow managed to spread and popularize Cell Theory. By using his political power and publishing scientific journals, Virchow made it easy for every person to learn about and understand Cell Theory.
