Bacteriology
Bacteriology: timeline of key events
Date |
Event |
People |
Places |
This was made by by Antoine van Leeuwenhoek, a Dutch textile merchant, while examining water closely. His letter announcing the discovery was greeted with scepticism by the Royal Society. 1675-01-01T00:00:00+00001675 | | First microscopic observations of protozoa and bacteria Leeuwenhoek | |
Sedillot was a French military physician and surgeon who was a major pioneer of endoscopic surgery, anaesthesiology, clinical histopathology and infectiology. In 1846 he performed the first gastronomy in the world. This is a surgical procedure the makes an opening between the stomach and the abdominal wall to enable the absorption of food through a tube. He was also one of the first to make the link between the proximity of the dissection room and the operating theatre in the development of postoperative infectious complications. Sedillot is also credited with coining the term 'microbe' (from the Greek: mikros, 'small', and bios, life') in 1878. 1804-09-18T00:00:00+000018 Sep 1804 | | Charles Sedillot was born in Paris, FranceSedillot | |
Semmelweis was a physician who in 1847 found that hand-washing with chlorinated lime solutions could dramatically reduce the number of women dying in childbirth from puerperal fever. He developed his method based on his observation that puerperal fever killed as many as 3 out 10 women who gave birth in hospital, but was rare among those who had home births. Believing the disease was possibly transmitted by doctors he insisted that all those who worked under him washed their hands in chemicals between patient examinations. Despite his success in reducing maternal mortality, his method was rejected during his life-time. It only became widespread after the rise of germ theory. 1818-07-01T00:00:00+00001 Jul 1818 | | Ignaz P Semmelweis was born in Budapest, Hungary Semmelweis | Vienna General Hospital |
Pasteur was a French chemist and microbiologist who is best known for inventing a sterilisation method for slowing down the development of microbes in milk and wine, a process now called pasteurisation. He also made significant breakthroughs in understanding the causes and prevention of bacterial diseases. His work was instrumental in helping to reduce the mortality rate from puerperal fever, a major cause of death for women in childbirth in the 19th century. Pasteur also pioneered the first rabies vaccine.1822-12-27T00:00:00+000027 Dec 1822 | | Louis Pasteur was bornPasteur | Pasteur Institute |
Klebs was a physician and bacteriologist who in 1883 discovered the bacillus that causes diphtheria (Corynebacterium diphtheriae). Renowned for his work on infectious diseases, Klebs' research laid the foundation for modern bacteriology. He was the first to successfully inoculate syphilis in monkeys, in 1878, and to isolate colonies of bacteria. In addition he was the first to show it was possible to cause tuberculosis in animals by injecting milk from infected cows and the first to identify the typhoid bacillus (now called Salmonella typhi). 1834-02-06T00:00:00+00006 Feb 1834 | | Edwin Klebs was born in Konigsberg, Prussia (now Germany)Klebs | University of Bern |
Koch was a major bacteriologist. He was responsible for the identification of the causative agents of anthrax (1876), tuberculosis (1882) and cholera (1883). This was aided by the photomicrography method he developed. The technique involved preparing thin layers of bacteria on glass slides which were fixed by heat. Koch also invented a method for culturing microorganisms in a drop nutrient solution on the underside of a glass slide. In 1890 he laid out 4 general criteria, known Koch's postulates, for establishing the causative relationship between a microbe and a disease. Koch was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1905 for his groundbreaking work on tuberculosis. 1843-12-11T00:00:00+000011 Dec 1843 | | Robert Koch was born in Clausthal (now Clausthal-Zellerfeld), GermanyKoch | University of Berlin |
Petri was a microbiologist who is credited with inventing the petri dish, a shallow glass cylinder used to culture cells and bacteria. This he developed in the late 1870s while working as an assistant to Robert Koch. Petri developed the dish to help culture bacteria on agar plates. He subsequently developed the technique of agar culture to clone bacterial colonies derived from single cells. His work helped improve the process of identifying bacteria responsible for disease. 1852-05-31T00:00:00+000031 May 1852 | | Richard Julius Petri was bornPetri | Imperial Health Office |
Loeffler was a bacteriologist who is credited with the first isolation of the bacillus (Corynebacterium diphtheriae) that causes diphtheria. This he did in 1884. It was always present in the mucous membranes of the larynx and trachea of patients with diphtheria. Loeffler manged to culture the organism and reproduce it in susceptible animals. Later on he demonstrated that some animals had immunity to the disease, which he believed was linked to a toxin produced by the bacillus. This laid the foundation for the development of antitoxin therapy against diphtheria. 1852-06-24T00:00:00+000024 Jun 1852 | | Friedrich A J Loeffler was born in Frankfurt, GermanyLoeffler | Friedrich Wilhelm Institute, University of Greifswald |
Gram was a bacteriologist who developed a method to quickly identify two different large groups of bacteria. His method is now routinely used for histology and microbiology. Bacteria that absorb the stain which turn purple are known as Gram positive bacteria, and those that do not absorb the stain, which might be coloured pink with a counterstain, are labelled Gram negative. 1853-09-13T00:00:00+000013 Sep 1853 | | Hans C J Gram was born in Copenhagen, DenmarkGram | University of Copenhagen |
Émile Roux was a physician, bacteriologist and immunologist who made his name working on diphtheria, a once fatal disease. In 1883 he helped to show that the disease was caused by a toxin secreted by the diphtheria bacillus. Based on this discovery and subsequent work by others that animals produce antibodies against the diphtheria toxin, Roux managed to develop a serum therapy to combat the disease. The treatment was proven effective in a trial conducted at the Hopital des Enfants-Malades with 300 diseased children.1853-11-17T00:00:00+000017 Nov 1853 | | Pierre Paul Émile Roux was born in Confolens, FranceEmile Roux | Pasteur Institute |
Ehrlich played a significant role in the development of the first serum therapy to combat diphtheria in the 1890s and devised methods for standardising therapeutic serums. In addition he invented staining techniques for distinguishing different types of blood cells which laid the foundation for diagnosing blood disorders. In 1900 he popularised the 'magic bullet' concept which promoted the idea of developing a drug capable of killing specific disease-causing microbes, like bacteria, without harming the body itself. Nine years later he succeeded in creating Salvasan, the first drug created to target a specific pathogen and the first effective medical treatment for syphilis. Ehrlich also coined the term 'antibody' and transformed understandings of how the immune system worked. In 1908 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine on the back of this work. Despite his groundbreaking research, Ehrlich struggled to get a permanent position because of his Jewish background. 1854-03-14T00:00:00+000014 Mar 1854 | | Paul Ehrlich was born in Strehlen (now Strzelin), Prussia (now Poland)Ehrlich | Strehlen, Prussia |
Neisser was a Polish-German physician who specicalised in dermatology and venereal diseases. In 1878 he demonstrated that the causative agent of gonorrhoea was a small bacterium which was named in his honour (Neisseria gonorrhoeae). He made the discovery while he was still a student assistant. An active public health campaigner, Neisser pioneered the rational treatment of gonorrhoea, which involved the constant checking-up of the effect of treatment by microscopical examination. Neisser was also the first to propose the use of potargol to treat gonorrhoea and campaigned against the indiscriminate use of astringents in the treatment of the disease.1855-01-22T00:00:00+000022 Jan 1855 | | Albert L S Neisser born in Schweidnitz, Prussia (now Poland)Neisser | University of Breslau |
Together with Daniel E Salmon, Smith provided the first proof that killed bacteria could be used to induce immunity in experimental animals, in 1886. This laid the foundation for the subsequent development of protective immunisation in humans against bacterial diseases like typhoid and cholera. Smith also pioneered the use of the fermentation tube to study bacterial physiology and classification. Using this technique he managed to identify the causes of several infectious parasitic diseases, including Texas Cattle Fever caused by ticks. His delineation of the tick's life-cycle paved the way to controlling the disease by dipping cattle to kill the ticks. Smith's revelation that insects could transmit disease was a major breakthrough and laid the foundation for the investigation of yellow fever and malaria. Smith established the first department of bacteriology at a medical school in the United States - at Columbian University (now George Washington University). 1859-07-31T00:00:00+000031 Jul 1859 | | Theobald Smith was born in Albany, New York, USASmith | Bureau of Animal Industry, George Washington University |
Biggs was a physician and pathologist who was a major leader in preventative medicine. He helped apply the science of bacteriology to the prevention and control of infectious diseases. For 22 years he maintained leadership roles in the New York City Health Department. In this position he introduced the use of diphtheria antitoxin to the United States and was active in the prevention and amelioration of tuberculosis.1859-09-29T00:00:00+000029 Sep 1859 | | Hermann M Biggs was born in Trumansburg, NY, USA
Biggs | New York City Health Department. |
1861-01-01T00:00:00+00001861 | | First experiments conducted by Louis Pasteur demonstrate that disease caused by microorganisms in the environment rather than in the airPasteur | |
Wright was a bacteriologist and immunologist who pioneered the development of a vaccine against typhoid in the 1890s. Initially the British military authorities were reluctant to roll out the vaccine, but limited trials during the Boer War proved its value. Further trials conducted among 3,000 soldiers in India confirmed its efficacy and the War Office used it to vaccinate British troops at the outset of World War I. Wright also developed vaccines against enteric tuberculosis and pneumonia. He also instrumental in research to understand how blood enzymes make bacteria more susceptible to phagocytosis by white blood cells. 1861-08-10T00:00:00+000010 Aug 1861 | | Almroth E Wright was born in Middleton Tyas, Yorkshire, UKWright | St Mary's Hospital |
Nicolaier was a German physician who is renowned for having discovered the cause of tetanus - toxins produced by the pathogen Clostridium tetani, a ubiquitous organism that lives in the soil and the gut flora of animals. This paved the way to his development of an antitoxin to induce passive immunity against tentatus - the first measure that became available to prevent the disease. Nicolaier carried out this work in 1884 when he was just 22 years old and still a medical student. He later went on to help develop Urotropin, a urinary tract disinfectant, and Atrophan, an anti-inflammatory drug. Nicolaier was forced to give up his position as associate professor at the University Department of Medicine in Berlin in 1933 because of his Jewish background. In 1942 he took an overdose of morphine so as not to be transported to Theresienstadt concentration camp.1862-02-04T00:00:00+00004 Feb 1862 | | Arthur Nicolaier was born in Cossel, Germany (now Poland)Nicolaier | Gottingen University, University of Berlin |
Yersin was a physician and bacteriologist who helped to discover the pathogen responsible for the bubonic plague in 1894. The plague bacillus was later named in his honour as Yersinia pestis. Following his discovery, Yersin managed to develop an anti-plague serum using pus excised from a plague victim which he successfully used to treat a Chinese student suffering from plague in 1896. Prior to his work on the plague bacillus, Yersin helped to discover the diphtheria toxin. 1863-09-22T00:00:00+000022 Sep 1863 | | Alexandre Yersin born in Aubonne, Vaud, SwitzerlandYersin | |
Semmelweis was a Hungarian physician of ethnic-German ancestry who in 1847 found that hand-washing with chlorinated lime solutions could dramatically reduce the number of women dying in childbirth from puerperal fever. He developed his method based on his observation that puerperal fever killed as many as 3 out 10 women who gave birth in hospital, but was rare among those who had home births. Believing the disease was possibly transmitted by doctors he insisted that all those who worked under him washed their hands in chemicals between patient examinations. Despite his success in reducing maternal mortality, his method was rejected during his life-time. It only became widespread after the rise of germ theory.
1865-08-13T00:00:00+000013 Aug 1865 | | Ignaz P Semmelweis diedSemmelweis | Vienna General Hospital |
Agramonte was a physician, pathologist and bacteriologist who discovered the role of the mosquito in the transmission of yellow fever in 1901. He made the discovery while working as a professor of bacteriology and experimental pathology at the University of Havana and assistant surgeon with the US Army. An influential leader of scientific medicine in Cuba, Agramonte originally trained in medicine at Columbia University. In addition to his research on yellow fever, Agramonte studied the transmission of plague, dengue, trachoma, malaria, tuberculosis, typhoid fever and other infectious diseases.1868-06-03T00:00:00+00003 Jun 1868 | | Aristides Agramonte y Simoni was born in Camaguey, CubaAgramonte | University of Havana |
Schaudinn was a zoologist and microbiologist who helped to discover the bacterial cause of syphilis, in 1905. He also identified the unicellular parasite Entamoeba histolytica, the amoeba that causes dysentery and confirmed hook worm infections are contracted through skin on the feet. This he established through experiments with monkeys. Schuadinn also made important discoveries relating to sleeping sickness and malaria. He died at the age of 34 after a surgical operation to remove a gastrointestinal abscess, probably caused by an amoebian infection he voluntarily acquired while researching amoebas.1871-09-19T00:00:00+000019 Sep 1871 | | Fritz R Schaudinn was bornSchaudinn | Charite – Universitatsmedizin Berlin |
d'Herelle was a microbiologist who co-discovered bacteriophages (phages), viruses that infect bacteria that are now major tools in biotechnology. He isolated the first phage from chicken faeces in 1919. Following this, he successfully treated chickens infected with typhus with the phage and in August 1919 cured a patient with dysentery using the same method. This laid the basis for the development of phage therapy. 1873-04-25T00:00:00+000025 Apr 1873 | | Felix d'Herelle was born in Montreal, Canadad'Herelle | Pasteur Institute |
Noguchi is best remembered for his identification, in 1913, of the causative agent of syphilis (the bacteria Treponema pallidum), and identification of the pathogen responsible for Carrion's disease (a Leishmania parasite). Unable to get a medical position in Japan because of his hand deformity which potential employers feared would put off potential patients, Noguchi spent his life doing laboratory work in the United States. While valued in his lifetime, his reputation took a battering after his death because researchers struggled to reproduce some of his claims, including having discovered the cause of yellow fever, polio and rabies.1876-11-24T00:00:00+000024 Nov 1876 | | Hideyo Noguchi was bornNoguchi | Rockefeller Institute |
The technique was developed by Robert Koch. His method involved preparing thin layers of bacteria on glass slides and fixing them by gentle heat. 1877-01-01T00:00:00+00001877 | | Technique developed for staining and identifying bacteriaKoch | |
A physician and bacteriologist, Zinsser isolated the bacterium that causes typhus and developed a protective vaccine against it. In 1935 he published the book 'Rats, Live and History' in which he recounted the effects of typhus on mankind and the efforts to eradicate it. In the book he argued that disease was responsible for more deaths than war. 1878-11-17T00:00:00+000017 Nov 1878 | | Hans Zinsser was born in New York City, USAZinsser | Columbia University, Stanford University, Harvard University |
Louis Pasteur develops an attenuated chicken cholera vaccine1879-01-01T00:00:00+00001879 | | Chicken cholera vaccine developedPasteur | Pasteur Institute |
Fleming was a biologist and microbiologist. He first made his mark through his discovery of lysosyme in 1923. This is an enzyme produced in the tears, saliva, mucus and human milk which is an important part of the immune system. Today he is best known for having found penicillin, a mould subsequently developed as the first antibiotic drug to treat bacterial diseases. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1945 for this discovery.1881-08-06T00:00:00+00006 Aug 1881 | | Alexander Fleming was bornFleming | London University |
Sedillot was a French military physician and surgeon who was a major pioneer of endoscopic surgery, anaesthesiology, clinical histopathology and infectiology. In 1846 he performed the first gastronomy in the world. This is a surgical procedure the makes an opening between the stomach and the abdominal wall to enable the absorption of food through a tube. He was also one of the first to make the link between the proximity of the dissection room and the operating theatre in the development of postoperative infectious complications. Sedillot is also credited with coining the term 'microbe' (from the Greek: mikros, 'small', and bios, life') in 1878.1883-01-19T00:00:00+000019 Jan 1883 | | Charles Sedillot diedSedillot | |
A physician and bacteriologist, in 1935 Colebrook demonstrated that Prontosil, one of the first antibacterial drugs, was an effective treatment for puerperal sepsis caused by streptococcal bacteria, an infection that killed many women in childbirth. His work dramatically reduced the number of women dying in childbirth and marked a major turning point in antimicrobial chemotherapy and the rise of sulphomides. He also made breakthroughs in burn care by using antisepsis treatment for burn wound infections and pushing for the establishment of burn units in hospitals.1883-03-02T00:00:00+00002 Mar 1883 | | Leonard Colebrook was born in Guildford, United KingdomLeonard Colebrook | St Mary's Hospital, Charlotte's Hospital |
Louis Pasteur successfully tested his rabies vaccine on a nine year old boy who had been bitten by a rabid dog.1885-07-06T00:00:00+00001885 | | First rabies vaccine testedPasteur | Pasteur Institute |
Rivers was a bacteriologist and virologist whose development of a tissue culture for the vaccinia virus, in 1931, paved the way to the development of a vaccine against yellow-fever. He also made important contributions to understanding the viral causes of influenza and chickenpox. Rivers served as the director of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research (1937-56) and chaired the virus research committee of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (now the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation) (1938-1955) which oversaw the development of the Salk and Sabin vaccines against polio. 1888-09-03T00:00:00+00003 Sep 1888 | | Thomas M Rivers was born in Jonesboro, Georgia, USARivers | Rockefeller Institute |
Pasteur was a French chemist and microbiologist who is best known for inventing a sterilisation method for slowing down the development of microbes in milk and wine, a process now called pasteurisation. He also made significant breakthroughs in understanding the causes and prevention of bacterial diseases. His work was instrumental in helping to reduce the mortality rate from puerperal fever, a major cause of death for women in childbirth in the 19th century. Pasteur also pioneered the first rabies vaccine.1895-09-28T00:00:00+000028 Sep 1895 | | Louis Pasteur diedPasteur | Pasteur Institute |
Domagk was a German pathologist, physician and bacteriologist. He is best known for having found sulphonamide to be an effective drug against bacterial infections. The molecule had originally been synthesised by chemists at the German company Bayer in 1908. Domagk discovered the antibacterial properties of the drug through preliminary tests in mice in 1931. Soon after this he successfully treated his own daughter struck down by a severe streptococcal infection. His work paved the way to the widespread adoption of sulphonamide drugs, the first commercially available antibiotics, in the late 1930s to treat infections caused by streptococci, including blood infections, childbirth fever, and erysipelas. Domagk was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1939 but the Nazi regime forced him to refuse it, with the Gestapo putting him under arrest for a week. He finally received the Nobel Prize in 1947.
1895-10-30T00:00:00+000030 Oct 1895 | | Gerhard Domagk was born in Lagow, GermanyDomagk | Munster University |
Wyckoff was a major pioneer of x-ray crystallography of bacteria. He helped develop a high-speed centrifuge for segregating microscopic and submicroscopic material to determine the sizes and molecular weights of small particles. In addition he purified the virus that causes equine encephalomyelitis which laid the foundation for the development of a vaccine to combat an epidemic of the disease in horses. His work in this field enabled him to create a vaccine against epidemic typhus for use in World War II. 1897-08-09T00:00:00+00009 Aug 1897 | | Ralph W G Wyckoff was born in Geneva, NY, USAWyckoff | Rockefeller University, University of Michigan, University of Arizona |
Schaudinn was a German zoologist and microbiologist who helped to discover the bacterial cause of syphilis, in 1905. He also identified the unicellular parasite Entamoeba histolytica, the amoeba that causes dysentery and confirmed hook worm infections are contracted through skin on the feet. This he established through experiments with monkeys. Schuadinn also made important discoveries relating to sleeping sickness and malaria. He died at the age of 34 after a surgical operation to remove a gastrointestinal abscess, probably caused by an amoebian infection he voluntarily acquired while researching amoebas.1906-06-22T00:00:00+000022 Jun 1906 | | Fritz R Schaudinn diedSchaudinn | Charite – Universitatsmedizin Berlin |
Koch was a major German bacteriologist. He was responsible for the identification of the causative agents of anthrax (1876), tuberculosis (1882) and cholera (1883). This was aided by the photomicrography method he developed. The technique involved preparing thin layers of bacteria on glass slides which were fixed by heat. Koch also invented a method for culturing microorganisms in a drop nutrient solution on the underside of a glass slide. In 1890 he laid out 4 general criteria, known Koch's postulates, for establishing the causative relationship between a microbe and a disease. Koch was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1905 for his groundbreaking work on tuberculosis. 1910-05-27T00:00:00+000027 May 1910 | | Robert Koch diedKoch | University of Berlin |
Klebs was a German-Swiss physician and bacteriologist who in 1883 discovered the bacillus that causes diphtheria (Corynebacterium diphtheriae). Renowned for his work on infectious diseases, Klebs' research laid the foundation for modern bacteriology. He was the first to successfully inoculate syphilis in monkeys, in 1878, and to isolate colonies of bacteria. In addition he was the first to show it was possible to cause tuberculosis in animals by injecting milk from infected cows and the first to identify the typhoid bacillus (now called Salmonella typhi).1913-10-23T00:00:00+000023 Oct 1913 | | Edwin Klebs diedKlebs | |
Loeffler was a bacteriologist who is credited with the first isolation of the bacillus (Corynebacterium diphtheriae) that causes diphtheria. This he did in 1884. It was always present in the mucous membranes of the larynx and trachea of patients with diphtheria. Loeffler manged to culture the organism and reproduce it in susceptible animals. Later on he demonstrated that some animals had immunity to the disease, which he believed was linked to a toxin produced by the bacillus. This laid the foundation for the development of antitoxin therapy against diphtheria.1915-04-15T00:00:00+000015 Apr 1915 | | Friedrich A J Loeffler diedLoeffler | Friedrich Wilhelm Institute, University of Greifswald |
Ehrlich played a significant role in the development of the first serum therapy to combat diphtheria in the 1890s and devised methods for standardising therapeutic serums. In addition he invented staining techniques for distinguishing different types of blood cells which laid the foundation for diagnosing blood disorders. In 1900 he popularised the 'magic bullet' concept which promoted the idea of developing a drug capable of killing specific disease-causing microbes, like bacteria, without harming the body itself. Nine years later he succeeded in creating Salvasan, the first drug created to target a specific pathogen and the first effective medical treatment for syphilis. Ehrlich also coined the term 'antibody' and transformed understandings of how the immune system worked. In 1908 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine on the back of this work. Despite his groundbreaking research, Ehrlich struggled to get a permanent position because of his Jewish background.1915-08-20T00:00:00+000020 Aug 1915 | | Paul Ehrlich diedEhrlich | Goettingen University |
Neisser was a German physician who specicalised in dermatology and venereal diseases. In 1878 he demonstrated that the causative agent of gonorrhoea was a small bacterium which was named in his honour (Neisseria gonorrhoeae). He made the discovery while he was still a student assistant. An active public health campaigner,
Neisser pioneered the rational treatment of gonorrhoea, which involved the constant checking-up of the effect of treatment by microscopical examination. Neisser was also the first to propose the use of potargol to treat gonorrhoea and campaigned against the indiscriminate use of astringents in the treatment of the disease. 1916-07-30T00:00:00+000030 Jul 1916 | | Albert L S Neisser diedNeisser | University of Breslau |
Petri was a microbiologist who is credited with inventing the petri dish, a shallow glass cylinder used to culture cells and bacteria. This he developed in the late 1870s while working as an assistant to Robert Koch. Petri developed the dish to help culture bacteria on agar plates. He subsequently developed the technique of agar culture to clone bacterial colonies derived from single cells. His work helped improve the process of identifying bacteria responsible for disease.1921-12-20T00:00:00+000020 Dec 1921 | | Richard Julius Petri diedPetri | Imperial Health Office |
Biggs was an American physician and pathologist who was a major leader in preventative medicine. He helped apply the science of bacteriology to the prevention and control of infectious diseases. For 22 years he maintained leadership roles in the New York City Health Department. In this position he introduced the use of diphtheria antitoxin to the United States and was active in the prevention and amelioration of tuberculosis. 1923-06-23T00:00:00+000023 Jun 1923 | | Hermann M Biggs diedBiggs | New York City Health Department. |
Noguchi was a Japanese bacteriologist. He is best remembered for his identification, in 1913, of the causative agent of syphilis (the bacteria Treponema pallidum), and identification of the pathogen responsible for Carrion's disease (a Leishmania parasite). Unable to get a medical position in Japan because of his hand deformity which potential employers feared would put off potential patients, Noguchi spent his life doing laboratory work in the United States. While valued in his lifetime, his reputation took a battering after his death because researchers struggled to reproduce some of his claims, including having discovered the cause of yellow fever, polio and rabies. 1928-05-21T00:00:00+000021 May 1928 | | Hideyo Noguchi diedNoguchi | Rockefeller Institute |
Agramonte was a Cuban physician, pathologist and bacteriologist who discovered the role of the mosquito in the transmission of yellow fever in 1901. He made the discovery while working as a professor of bacteriology and experimental pathology at the University of Havana and assistant surgeon with the US Army. An influential leader of scientific medicine in Cuba, Agramonte originally trained in medicine at Columbia University. In addition to his research on yellow fever, Agramonte studied the transmission of plague, dengue, trachoma, malaria, tuberculosis, typhoid fever and other infectious diseases. 1931-08-19T00:00:00+000019 Aug 1931 | | Aristides Agramonte y Simoni diedAgramonte | University of Havana |
Émile Roux was a French physician, bacteriologist and immunologist who made his name working on diphtheria, a once fatal disease. In 1883 he helped to show that the disease was caused by a toxin secreted by the diphtheria bacillus. Based on this discovery and subsequent work by others that animals produce antibodies against the diphtheria toxin, Roux managed to develop a serum therapy to combat the disease. The treatment was proven effective in a trial conducted at the Hopital des Enfants-Malades with 300 diseased children.1933-11-03T00:00:00+00003 Nov 1933 | | Pierre Paul Émile Roux diedEmile Roux | Pasteur Institute |
Together with Daniel E Salmon, Smith provided the first proof that killed bacteria could be used to induce immunity in experimental animals, in 1886. This laid the foundation for the subsequent development of protective immunisation in humans against bacterial diseases like typhoid and cholera. Smith also pioneered the use of the fermentation tube to study bacterial physiology and classification. Using this technique he managed to identify the causes of several infectious parasitic diseases, including Texas Cattle Fever caused by ticks. His delineation of the life-cycle of the tick paved the way to control of the disease by dipping cattle to kill the ticks. Smith's revelation that insects could transmit disease was a major breakthrough and laid the foundation for the investigation of yellow fever and malaria. Smith established the first department of bacteriology at a medical school in the United States - at Columbian University (now George Washington University).1934-12-10T00:00:00+000010 Dec 1934 | | Theobald Smith diedSmith | Bureau of Animal Industry, George Washington University |
An American physician and bacteriologist, Zinsser isolated the bacterium that causes typhus and developed a protective vaccine against it. In 1935 he published the book 'Rats, Live and History' in which he recounted the effects of typhus on mankind and the efforts to eradicate it. In the book he argued that disease was responsible for more deaths than war.1940-09-04T00:00:00+00004 Sep 1940 | | Hans Zinsser diedZinsser | Columbia University, Stanford University, Harvard University |
Nicolaier was a German physician who is renowned for having discovered the cause of tetanus - toxins produced by the pathogen Clostridium tetani, a ubiquitous organism that lives in the soil and the gut flora of animals. This paved the way to his development of an antitoxin to induce passive immunity against tentatus - the first measure that became available to prevent the disease. Nicolaier carried out this work in 1884 when he was just 22 years old and still a medical student. He later went on to help develop Urotropin, a urinary tract disinfectant, and Atrophan, an anti-inflammatory drug. Nicolaier was forced to give up his position as associate professor at the University Department of Medicine in Berlin in 1933 because of his Jewish background. In 1942 he took an overdose of morphine so as not to be transported to Theresienstadt concentration camp.1942-08-28T00:00:00+000028 Aug 1942 | | Arthur Nicolaier diedNicolaier | Gottingen University, University of Berlin |
Yersin was a Swiss and naturalised French physician and bacteriologist who helped to discover the pathogen responsible for the bubonic plague in 1894. The plague bacillus was later named in his honour as Yersinia pestis. Following his discovery, Yersin managed to develop an anti-plague serum using pus excised from a plague victim which he successfully used to treat a Chinese student suffering from plague in 1896. Prior to his work on the plague bacillus, Yersin helped to discover the diphtheria toxin.1943-03-01T00:00:00+00001 Mar 1943 | | Alexandre Yersin diedYersin | |
Wright was a British bacteriologist and immunologist who pioneered the development of a vaccine against typhoid in the 1890s. Initially the British military authorities were reluctant to roll out the vaccine, but limited trials during the Boer War proved its value. Further trials conducted among 3,000 soldiers in India confirmed its efficacy and the War Office used it to vaccinate British troops at the outset of World War I. Wright also developed vaccines against enteric tuberculosis and pneumonia. He also instrumental in research to understand how blood enzymes make bacteria more susceptible to phagocytosis by white blood cells.1947-04-30T00:00:00+000030 Apr 1947 | | Almroth E Wright diedWright | St Mary's Hospital |
d'Herelle was a French Canadian microbiologist who co-discovered bacteriophages (phages), viruses that infect bacteria that are now major tools in biotechnology. He isolated the first phage from chicken faeces in 1919. Following this he successfully treated chickens infected with typhus with the phage and in August 1919 cured a patient with dysentery using the same method. This laid the basis for the development of phage therapy. 1949-02-22T00:00:00+000022 Feb 1949 | | Felix d'Herelle diedd'Herelle | Pasteur Institute |
Marshall shared the 2005 Nobel Prize for Medicine for helping to work out that peptic ulcers and gastritis are caused by the Helicobacter pylori, a type of bacteria. This finding, published in 1983, ended decades of medical teaching that bacteria could not live in the stomach's acidic environment and that peptic ulcers were caused by stress, spicy foods and too much acid. To demonstrate the link Marshall drank a broth containing Helicobacter pylori, which five days later began to give him symptoms. Thanks to this work peptic ulcer disease can now be treated with a short course of antibiotics and acid secretion inhibitors. 1951-09-30T00:00:00+000030 Sep 1951 | | Barry J Marshall was born in Kalgoorlie, AustraliaMarshall | University of Western Australia |
Fleming was a Scottish biologist and microbiologist. He first made his mark through his discovery of lysosyme in 1923. This is an enzyme produced in the tears, saliva, mucus and human milk which is an important part of the immune system. Today he is best known for having found penicillin, a mould subsequently developed as the first antibiotic drug to treat bacterial diseases. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1945 for this discovery.1955-03-11T00:00:00+000011 Mar 1955 | | Alexander Fleming diedFleming | London University |
Rivers was a bacteriologist and virologist whose development of a tissue culture for the vaccinia virus, in 1931, paved the way to the development of a vaccine against yellow-fever. He also made important contributions to understanding the viral causes of influenza and chickenpox. Rivers served as the director of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research (1937-56) and chaired the virus research committee of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (now the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation) (1938-1955) which oversaw the development of the Salk and Sabin vaccines against polio.1962-05-12T00:00:00+000012 May 1962 | | Thomas M Rivers diedRivers | Rockefeller Institute |
Domagk was a German pathologist, physician and bacteriologist. He is best known for having found sulphonamide to be an effective drug against bacterial infections. The molecule had originally been synthesised by chemists at the German company Bayer in 1908. Domagk discovered the antibacterial properties of the drug through preliminary tests in mice in 1931. Soon after this he successfully treated his own daughter struck down by a severe streptococcal infection. His work paved the way to the widespread adoption of sulphonamide drugs, the first commercially available antibiotics, in the late 1930s to treat infections caused by streptococci, including blood infections, childbirth fever, and erysipelas. Domagk was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1939 but the Nazi regime forced him to refuse it, with the Gestapo putting him under arrest for a week. He finally received the Nobel Prize in 1947. 1964-04-24T00:00:00+000024 Apr 1964 | | Gerhard Domagk diedDomagk | Munster University |
Colebrook was a British physician and bacteriologist who is in 1935 demonstrated that Prontosil, one of the first antibacterial drugs, was an effective treatment for puerperal sepsis caused by streptococcal bacteria, an infection that killed many women in childbirth. His work in the area dramatically reduced the number of women dying in childbirth and marked a major turning point in antimicrobial chemotherapy. He also made breakthroughs in burn care by using antisepsis treatment for burn wound infections and pushing for the establishment of burn units in hospitals.1967-09-27T00:00:00+000027 Sep 1967 | | Leonard Colebrook diedLeonard Colebrook | St Mary's Hospital, Charlotte's Hospital |
Wyckoff was a major pioneer of x-ray crystallography of bacteria. He helped develop a high-speed centrifuge for segregating microscopic and submicroscopic material to determine the sizes and molecular weights of small particles. In addition he purified the virus that causes equine encephalomyelitis which laid the foundation for the development of a vaccine to combat an epidemic of the disease in horses. His work in this field enabled him to create a vaccine against epidemic typhus for use in World War II.1994-11-03T00:00:00+00003 Nov 1994 | | Ralph W G Wyckoff diedWyckoff | University of Michigan, University of Arizona |
First microscopic observations of protozoa and bacteria
Charles Sedillot was born in Paris, France
Ignaz P Semmelweis was born in Budapest, Hungary
Edwin Klebs was born in Konigsberg, Prussia (now Germany)
Robert Koch was born in Clausthal (now Clausthal-Zellerfeld), Germany
Richard Julius Petri was born
Friedrich A J Loeffler was born in Frankfurt, Germany
Hans C J Gram was born in Copenhagen, Denmark
Pierre Paul Émile Roux was born in Confolens, France
Paul Ehrlich was born in Strehlen (now Strzelin), Prussia (now Poland)
Albert L S Neisser born in Schweidnitz, Prussia (now Poland)
Theobald Smith was born in Albany, New York, USA
Hermann M Biggs was born in Trumansburg, NY, USA
First experiments conducted by Louis Pasteur demonstrate that disease caused by microorganisms in the environment rather than in the air
Almroth E Wright was born in Middleton Tyas, Yorkshire, UK
Arthur Nicolaier was born in Cossel, Germany (now Poland)
Alexandre Yersin born in Aubonne, Vaud, Switzerland
Aristides Agramonte y Simoni was born in Camaguey, Cuba
Fritz R Schaudinn was born
Felix d'Herelle was born in Montreal, Canada
Technique developed for staining and identifying bacteria
Hans Zinsser was born in New York City, USA
Chicken cholera vaccine developed
Alexander Fleming was born
Leonard Colebrook was born in Guildford, United Kingdom
First rabies vaccine tested
Thomas M Rivers was born in Jonesboro, Georgia, USA
Gerhard Domagk was born in Lagow, Germany
Ralph W G Wyckoff was born in Geneva, NY, USA
Friedrich A J Loeffler died
Richard Julius Petri died
Aristides Agramonte y Simoni died
Pierre Paul Émile Roux died
Barry J Marshall was born in Kalgoorlie, Australia
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