Alexander fleming biography and contribution of antoinette

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His cautionary words are now quoted frequently in discussions of antibiotic stewardship, underlining how this Alexander Fleming biography intersects with today’s urgent debates on global health policy and responsible prescribing.

Many accounts of the Alexander Fleming biography linger on this moment – the scientist staring at a plate he might easily have thrown away. Born in 1881 in Lochfield, Scotland, Fleming was most notable for his discovery of penicillin, one of the most important antibiotics in the history of medicine.

In 1928, while conducting research at St.

Mary's Hospital in London, Fleming noticed that a culture of bacteria had been contaminated by a fungus of the genus Penicillium. He called the antibacterial substance it produced “penicillin”.

In simple terms, Fleming had stumbled on a fungus that secreted a chemical weapon against bacteria. The lab combined clinical work for the hospital with fundamental research.

Some historians argue that calling Fleming the “discoverer of penicillin” oversimplifies the process, since Florey, Chain and their colleagues turned a laboratory observation into a medicine that could be injected into patients and manufactured at scale. Fleming did. It was only 10 years after his initial experiments that the biochemist and physician Florey showed interest in the compound, specifically for its bactericidal properties.

The two scientists worked at the Oxford Institute of Pathology and there formed a team through which they sought to analyze the components of penicillin and purify it, so that it could be stabilized and used on a small scale in experiments with previously infected mice.

These experiments were positive, as it was discovered that untreated mice died as a result of infection; on the other hand, mice that received the antidote created with penicillin were able to recover and live.

This was the final check that decisively determined the presence of a cure for the infection by Staphylococcus aureus .

Use

These discoveries occurred in the period leading up to World War II, and it was precisely the scenario in which penicillin was most widely used, so much so that it was named “the wonder drug”.

Several infections were cured quickly and effectively, which was crucial in the midst of this war.

There was a downside: the drug's production was too expensive and complex to be produced on the scale needed.

He lacked both the chemical expertise and the industrial backing to purify the compound on a large scale, and his early samples were unstable and weak. Alexander Fleming Biography.com.: A&E Television Networks. For some observers, the later chapters of the Alexander Fleming biography are tinged with irony: the quiet lab man transformed into a symbol, his image simplified even as scientific understanding of antibiotics grew more complex.

Warning the world about misuse

In public speeches, Fleming repeatedly stressed that penicillin was not a magic bullet to be used without care.

His pioneering research paved the way for the effective treatment of bacterial infections and saved countless lives, especially during World War II.

What award was given to Fleming for his revolutionary discovery?

Alexander Fleming was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1945 for his revolutionary discovery of penicillin. As a result, the farm where they lived was taken over by Hugh Fleming's widow, Grace Stirling Morton.

Fleming's early education was somewhat precarious, given the family's economic situation.

Spraying an antiseptic made things even worse if the wound was deep.

Fleming came back to his laboratory in 1928 after a long vacation. Encouraged by an older brother who was already a doctor, Fleming sat the entrance exam for St Mary’s Hospital Medical School in London – and passed with ease.

Two years later, he published formal research, where he discovered the uses of lysozyme to fight certain types of bacteria without damaging human cells.

Lysozyme is currently used in the treatment of oropharyngeal infections and certain viral diseases, in addition to stimulating some of the body's reactions and contributing to the action of antibiotics or chemotherapy drugs.

Although it is found in human fluids such as tears, mucus, hair and nails, it is currently extracted artificially from egg whites.

Penicillin: the most important antibiotic in history

One of the most famous fables in the history of science originated when Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1927.

It was a quiet turning point in the Alexander Fleming biography, the moment he stepped from office ledgers into dissecting theatres. He had returned from a long vacation with his family to find his laboratory in disarray.

A staph culture was full of mold, but Fleming, instead of throwing it away, wanted to examine it under a microscope. Retrieved 10 December 2017 from bl.uk