Pioneers in Microbiology

The following sections are included:

• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• About the Authors
• Contents

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723): The First Microbiologist
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Robert Hooke
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Spallanzani
• Commentary

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• The Life of Edward Jenner
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Agostino Bassi
• Commentary

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life and Accomplishment of Semmelweis
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Early Years
• Chemist with a Microscope
• Fermentation
• Disproval of the Fallacy of Spontaneous Generation
• Silkworms, Microbes, and Disease
• Concepts of Immunity and Attenuation
• Other Diseases Studied
• Pasteur and Rabies, a “Filterable Virus”
• The Later Year
• Commentary
• Acknowledgement
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Ferdinand Cohn
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Surgery
• Aseptic Surgery
• Baron Joseph Lister, MB, FRCS, FRS

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of de Bary
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Thomas Burrill
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Background and Education
• Early Career
• The Hanging Drop Slide
• Spores!
• Photomicrography!
• Flourishing of Microbial Diseases Research
• Tuberculin Incidence
• Further Infectious Disease Research
• Visits to the United States and Final Years
• Honors and Awards
• Personal Caliber
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Metchnikoff
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Beijerinck’s Humble Family Origins
• Research and Teaching Become Beijerinck’s Focus
• Beijerinck Moves from Academic Life
• Beijerinck’s Scientific Reputation Grows
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Roux
• Commentary

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of von Behring
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Erwin F. Smith
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of David Bruce
• Commentary

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Winogradsky
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Biography
• Commentary
• Suggested Readings

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Background and Education
• Achievement
• Honors and Awards
• Personal Calibers
• Commentary
• Suggested Readings

Alexandre Emile John Yersin was well known for his isolation of the causative agent of bubonic plague which played an extremely important role in the episode of human misery in our history. This disease killed millions in Europe in medieval time and had also struck the French as recently as 1720. He was also a very interesting person though he is a relatively unknown contributor to the conquest of infectious diseases. His life career was full of excitements and challenges which most scientists do not experience…

The following sections are included:

• Early Life of Albert Calmette
• The Saigon Years (1891–1893)
• Studies on Antivenomous Serum and Antiplague Serum
• Research Concerns Public Health
• Development of BCG
• Final Years
• Recent Findings of BCG
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Charles Nicolle

Howard Taylor Ricketts made a tremendous contribution to the understanding of a unique kind of microbial disease including Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Mexican typhus. The pathogens of these diseases are named Rickettsia and diseases caused by these bacteria are generally called rickettsial diseases. This is in memory of Howard T. Ricketts who was the first to discover the bacteria which caused these diseases…

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Chaim Weizmann
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Oswald Avery
• Commentary

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Frederick Griffith
• Griffith’s Further Work
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Alexander Fleming
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Gerhardt J. Domagk
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Life of Paul de Kruif
• Commentary

Food Microbiology (McGraw-Hill, 1958). The book has been widely used and is now in its fifth edition. It was originally written by William C. Frazier, a pioneer dairy and food microbiologist. During his career at The University of Wisconsin, he played an important part in the development and growth of the Bacteriology Department and the education of many dairy and food microbiologists. His former students have made great contributions to the development of dairy and food industries in this country and abroad as well as in other areas of microbiology…

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Background and Education
• Achievement
• Services and Recognitions
• Personal Caliber
• Commentary
• Suggested Reading

In December of 1928, there arrived a young PhD, Dr. C. B. van Niel at the Jacquez Loeb Laboratory of the Hopkins Marine Station belonging to Stanford University and located on the Monterey Peninsula, California. Many of us remembered Dr. van Niel for his work on photosynthesis. He developed a revolutionary concept of the chemistry of photosynthesis that was to influence research on the topic for many years. He also was the first in the United States to teach “General Microbiology”. His teaching resulted in the great blossoming of microbiology in this century. Many distinguished microbiologists including Nobel Laureates, were influenced by him directly or indirectly. Van Niel was the third important figure of the Delft School of microbiology — Martinus W. Beijerinck (1851–1931), Albert J. Kluyver (1888–1956), and Cornelis B. van Niel (1897–1985). He brought the rich inheritance of the Delft School to the United States. To call him a “pioneer of General Microbiology” of this country is very appropriate…

Max Theiler was the leader in the development of the yellow fever vaccine. For his work on the yellow fever vaccine, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology in 1951…

The following sections are included:

• Earlier Years of René J. Dubos
• Brief Biographies of Important Persons Mentioned in the Text

Barbara McClintock never worked directly with bacteria or viruses, but she was a great microbiologist. Her pioneering directly affected the genetics of the microbial world. When we use the word “microbiologist”, we usually think of virologists or bacteriologists. But, we need to remember that many helminths (and we think of them as the “parasites” even though bacteria and viruses are also parasites!) are microscopic. Considering life cycles, starting with the egg and sperm, all “life” is microscopic, at some stage. All living things are at any one time, divided into the microscopic or the macroscopic. The microscopic, the world of invisible, is as vast and surprising as the macroscopic universe, with its enormous solar systems and spiral nebulae. Barbara McClintock was a true pioneer of the microscopic world…

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Background and Education
• Achievement
• Organizational and Administrative Activities
• Honors and Awards
• Personal Calibers
• Commentary
• Brief Biographies of Important Persons Mentioned in the Text
• Additional Resources
• Suggested Reading

Edward Lawrie Tatum was well known for his pioneering work on the mutational analysis of biochemical pathway, which laid foundation for the discovery of the gene control of the biosynthesis of proteins. He was a pioneer in postulating one gene-one enzyme theory. Edward Tatum together with George W. Beadle (1903–1989) and Joshua Lederberg (1925–2008) were awarded with Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1958…

Horace Albert Barker is well known for his work on various aspects of bacterial metabolism, including synthesis and oxidation of fatty acids, fermentation of amino acids and purines, carbohydrate transformations, methane formation, and isolation, structure and function determination of some bacterial enzymes and coenzymes. He elucidated many anaerobic metabolic pathways which are reported in many microbiology textbooks today…

Deam H. Ferris had done much work on the infectious microbiology. His book Illustrated Manual for the Recognition and Diagnosis of Foreign Animal Disease has been translated into more than eight languages and used worldwide. He was a pioneer in the study of diseases common to animals and humans —zoonosis. He had done major work on vesicular stomatitis (VS); developed transmissible gastroenteritis (TGE) vaccine for swine. He was the first to isolate Micronema deletrix in horse and demonstrated the defective infection of rabies in animals. His work benefits the human welfare tremendously…

When we enjoy beverages at a party, we may be aware that some of them are products of the life processes of yeasts. Yeasts have made numerous contributions to human welfare but have also added to the scope of human suffering. How much do we know about the yeasts and how are they different from bacteria or higher fungi? Dr. Herman J. Phaff has dedicated his career to the study of the biology and biochemistry of yeasts. His work covers classical physiology, ecology, taxonomy, and modern molecular systematics and biology. Among the greatest microbiologists of all time, Phaff stands out as the most important contributor of fundamental knowledge of yeast biology. He is truly a pioneer microbiologist.

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Background and Education
• Research with Antibiotics
• Penicillin Studies
• Studies with Vitamin B₁₂
• Development of Bioengineering
• Amino Acids
• Developmental Research Problems
• Further Antibiotics Research
• New Fields of Challenge
• Foreign Diplomacy
• Returning to Soil Microbiology
• Endeavor After Retirement
• Academic Societies Services
• Honors
• Personal Life
• Suggested Reading

The following section is included:

• Introduction

Esther M. (Zimmer) Lederberg contributed greatly to the birth of modern bacterial genetics. With the collaboration of her husband, Joshua Lederberg (1925–2008), she contributed to the elucidation of lyogenicity, bacterial recombination, transformation, DNA repair, phase variation of flagellic antigens in Salmonella, drug resistance, and transduction, which is the transfer of bacterial genes from one organism to another through bacteriophage. She invented the “Replica Plating” method, which has been widely used in bacterial genetic research. She discovered lambda phage and made a big contribution to the understanding of plasmid biology. Despite her contributions, Joshua Lederberg [along with George W. Beadle (1903–1989) and Edward Lawrie Tatum (1909–1975)] received the Nobel Prize in medicine or physiology in 1958. Esther was left out…

Marvin P. Bryant is one of the most outstanding rumen microbiologists who extended the study of the rumen ecosystem initiated by Robert E. Hungate (1906–2004) in the United States. Dr. Bryant gives the most detailed and accurate descriptions and analyses of the types and kinds of bacteria in the rumen, and discloses many important biochemical pathways and metabolic interactions which affect the development of other branches of biology such as biochemistry, animal nutrition, ecology, and genetics and phylogenetics. He has made a very significant contribution. He is an example of the self-learning and hardworking contemporary American Scientist, who help to greatly expand our knowledge of microbiology…

Joshua Lederberg was awarded the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physiology or medicine for his discovery of “sexual recombination” in bacteria (bacterial conjugation). This award was shared with Drs. George Wells Beadle (1903–1989) and Edward Lawrie Tatum (1909–1975). Conjugation is mediated by the presence of the P factor (fertility factor or plasmid) and requires cell-to-cell contact. The plasmid can reside inside the donor bacterium as an extrachromosomal element with its own origin of replication or it can be integrated into the bacterial chromosome. When integrated in the chromosome, replicative transfer begins within the F plasmid region at the oriT region and continues into the chromosomal region. Thus, the chromosomal genes as well as F plasmid genes are transferred to the recipient cell during conjugation. Via a process of recombination (Hfr – high frequency recombination), the newly acquired deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is incorporated into the recipient’s chromosome and the recipient cell in turn becomes a donor cell, provided an intact F plasmid is present. When the plasmid DNA is maintained as an extrachromosomal element, the F plasmid is transferred at a high frequency. Dr. Lederberg made the distinction between Hfr and F⁺ and coined the term plasmid in 1950 to describe extrachromosomal genetic elements. However, the term was not widely accepted until the 1970s when bacterial drug resistance was shown to be mediated by self-transmissible plasmids and became a major medical problem…

The discovery of the antibiotic penicillin in 1928 by Alexander Fleming (1881–1955) did not attract much attention until 1940, when Howard Florey (1898–1968), Ernst Chain (1906–1979), and associates published a paper in Lancet on the therapeutic effect of this compound. At that time, René Jules Dubos (1901–1982) and collaborators demonstrated that bacilli produced bactericidal substances. Following these leads, many microbiologists became interested in hunting for antibiotics. Of these, a group led by the soil microbiologist Selman A. Waksman (1888–1973) at the College of Agriculture of Rutgers University, the State University of New Jersey, was probably the best known. Hubert A. Lechevalier was a member of that group and discovered neomycin (1949) and candicidin (1953), thus contributing to the warfare that mankind wages against infection. A few more antibiotics were later isolated in his laboratory but did not find practical application. Later, Dr. H. A. Lechevalier, with his wife Mary, investigated, mainly the taxonomy of mold-like bacteria, the actinomycetes. They made a useful contribution by developing a system of classification of actinomycetes based on morphology and chemical composition (1965). Also, one of their associates, Dr. Nancy N. Gerber (1929–1985), extended the range of their studies to the chemistry of pigments and volatile substances produced by actinomycetes. In addition, Lechevalier developed an interest in the history of microbiology and the book that he wrote in collaboration with Morris Solotorovsky (1913–1992); Three Centuries of Microbiology is one of the best on the subject…

Thomas D. Brock is probably the most well-known microbes hunter in the 20th century. He and his associates isolated many microorganisms from different habitats and explored the diversity of microorganisms. He also blossoms in other aspects, including text books writings, publishing, computer, and the history of science. He is a versatile scientist.

Dr. Arnold Lester Demain has done a tremendous amount of work on the application of microbiology, which includes microbial toxins, enzyme fermentations, biosynthesis of antibiotics, vitamins, amino acids and nucleotides, microbial nutrition, industrial fermentations, regulatory mechanisms, and genetic engineering of fermentative microorganisms. To call him a giant of industrial microbiology is very appropriate. His life is a witness of the progress of biotechnology; therefore, it is very worthwhile for us to learn about it…

Dr. Bruce N Ames is well known for his famous Ames Salmonella/microsome mutagenicity assay, which is used by more than 3000 laboratories in the world to test chemicals for mutagenic activity in a bacterial system. His method, and also his involvement in the study of identifying mutagens/carcinogens, have influenced cancer studies for more than 50 years and will continue to influence research in the future. He is a world leader in molecular genetic toxicology, his research accomplishments having made a great impact on how we think about cancer and other degenerative diseases today…

Richard Lane Crowell dedicated most of his career to perform research on enteroviruses in mammalian cell cultures with emphasis on chronic infections, the viral interference phenomenon, factors that make cells susceptible to viral infections, and the role of coxsackieviruses in heart disease, diabetes, and myositis. He is best known for his studies on cellular receptors, which are important determinants of virus susceptibility of the host cells. He has also been active in many biomedical organizations including being elected President of the Association of Medical School Microbiology Chairs of the United States and Canada (1986) and of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) (1991). He has helped advance the biomedical education…

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1996 was awarded to Drs. Peter Charles Doherty and Rolf M. Zinkernagel (1944 to present) for their work on how the human immune system recognizes viral infected cells and then targeted them for destruction. Their discovery has led to a new understanding of organ rejection after being transferred, and a better comprehension of genetic susceptibility to diseases and a new approach for vaccines…

The following sections are included:

• Name Index
• Subject Index