(Louis Pasteur) Pasteur, a French chemist and microbiologist, was the first to successfully use a vaccine against such terrible diseases as anthrax, cholera and rabies. With his work on the study of fermentation, Pasteur saved the producers of beer, wine and silk in France and in other countries; He also invented pasteurization.
Louis Pasteur was born December 27, 1822. He was the son of a retired French soldier, the owner of a small tannery in the town of Dole. Pasteur successfully completed his studies, first at a college in Arbois, and then in Besançon. After graduating here with a bachelor's degree, he entered the Higher Normal School in 1843. Louis was particularly interested in chemistry and physics.
After graduating from school in 1847, Pasteur passed the exams for the title of assistant professor of physical sciences. And a year later he defended his doctoral dissertation. Then Pasteur had already gained fame for his research in the field of crystal structure. He discovered the reason for the unequal influence of a beam of polarized light on the crystals of organic substances.
Also in 1848, Pasteur became associate professor of physics at Dijon. Three months later, he takes up a new position as associate professor of chemistry in Strasbourg. Pasteur took an active part in the revolution of 1848.
In 1854 he was appointed dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences in Lille. Pasteur noticed that asymmetric crystals are found in substances formed during fermentation. In 1857, Pasteur proved that fermentation is not a chemical process, as it was then customary to think, but a biological phenomenon, which is the result of the vital activity of microscopic organisms - yeast fungi.
Pasteur found that there are organisms that can live without oxygen. They are called anaerobic. Their representatives are microbes that cause butyric acid fermentation. The reproduction of such microbes causes rancidity of wine and beer.
In 1857 Pasteur returned to Paris as vice-principal of the Higher Normal School. In 1862 he was elected a member of the "institute" in the department of mineralogy, and a few years later the permanent secretary of the institute. In 1867-1876 he held the chair of chemistry at the Faculty of Paris.
In 1864, he began to study the issue of the occurrence of wine diseases. The result of his research was a monograph in which Pasteur showed that wine diseases are caused by various microorganisms, and each disease has a specific pathogen. To destroy the harmful "organized enzymes" he suggested heating the wine at a temperature of 50-60 degrees. This method is called pasteurization.
In 1874, the Chamber of Deputies, in recognition of outstanding services to his homeland, awarded him a lifetime pension of 12,000 francs, increased in 1883 to 26,000 francs. In 1881 Pasteur was elected a member of the French Academy.
Starting with unraveling the "diseases" of wine and beer, the scientist devoted his entire future life to the study of microorganisms and the search for means of combating pathogens of dangerous contagious diseases of animals and humans.
Pasteur's works revealed the fallacy of the view, widespread in medicine of that time, according to which any diseases arise either inside the body or under the influence of spoiled air ("miasma"). Pasteur showed that diseases that are called contagious can only occur as a result of infection, that is, the penetration of microbes into the body from the external environment.
In 1880, Pasteur found a way to prevent infectious diseases by introducing weakened pathogens, which turned out to be applicable to many infectious diseases.
But before the vaccination method was fully accepted, Pasteur had to endure a difficult struggle. To prove the correctness of his discovery, in 1881 Pasteur made a massive public experiment. He injected dozens of sheep and cows with anthrax microbes. Half of the experimental animals Pasteur pre-injected his vaccine. On the second day, all unvaccinated animals died from anthrax, and all vaccinated animals did not get sick and remained alive. This experience, which took place in front of numerous witnesses, was a triumph for the scientist.
Pasteur developed a method of inoculation against rabies, using specially dried brains of rabbits infected with rabies. On July 6, 1885, he successfully tested a vaccine on a human for the first time.
In 1889, Pasteur resigned from all duties in order to devote himself to the organization and management of the institute named after him. The Royal Society of London awarded him two gold medals in 1856 and 1874; The French Academy of Sciences awarded him a prize for his work on the question of spontaneous generation.
In 1892, the seventieth anniversary of the birth of the scientist was solemnly celebrated, and on September 28, 1895, Pasteur died in Vildeneuf-Letan, near Paris.
“The French bacteriologist Louis Pasteur was studying the culture of smallpox bacteria in his laboratory. Suddenly, a stranger appeared to him and introduced himself as a second of a nobleman, who thought that the scientist had insulted him. The nobleman demanded satisfaction. Pasteur listened to the messenger and said: “Since they call me, I have the right choose a weapon. Here are two flasks; smallpox bacteria in one, pure water in the other. If the person who sent you agrees to drink one of them, I will drink another. "The duel did not take place."
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Everyone knows the word "pasteurization". It is a process of controlled heat treatment of food to kill bacteria and other microorganisms. Not a single housewife can do without pasteurization when preserving vegetables and fruits at home.
Without this process, the food industry and winemakers around the world will not be able to work. Thanks to the discovery of the scientist, it became possible to preserve food for a long time and save people from hunger.
Pasteurization is a stunning discovery by Louis Pasteur. We will talk about this person today.
Louis Pasteur: biography
Louis was born on December 27, 1822 (zodiac sign Capricorn) in the city of Dole, in eastern France. Louis was the son of a tanner. The father dreamed of giving his son a decent education.
When Pasteur was 5 years old, his family moved to the city of Arbois, 437 kilometers from. Here, his father opened a leather workshop, and Pasteur Jr. began his college studies.
In his studies, the boy was distinguished by perseverance and diligence, surprising all the teachers. After graduating from college, Louis worked as a junior teacher in Besançon.
Then he moved to Paris to enter the Higher Normal School. In 1843, he easily passed the entrance exams and, four years later, received a diploma. Many years later, Louis will become the director of studies of this prestigious school.
The young man was talented in painting. As a teenager, he painted wonderful portraits of his mother, sisters and friends. For his results in painting, Pasteur received a Bachelor of Arts degree. His name was included in reference books as a great portrait painter of the 19th century. But the young man made a firm decision to devote himself to science.
In 1889 Pasteur took over a private institute which he had organized in Paris. The best biologists worked at the institute, 8 of which became Nobel laureates. From the very beginning until his death, he worked at the Pasteur Institute
Scientific discoveries of Pasteur
- 1846 - the structure of tartaric acid crystals was discovered;
- 1861 - a way to preserve liquid products by heat treatment was discovered. Hereinafter referred to as pasteurization;
- 1865 - found effective methods to combat diseases of the silkworm. Sericulture has been saved!
- 1876 - immunology. In the process of researching infectious diseases, he established that pathogens of a certain kind cause diseases;
- 1881 - Anthrax vaccine developed;
- 1885 - Rabies vaccine.
Personal life
In 1848, the young scientist began working at the University of Strasbourg. Here he studied the processes of fermentation, which subsequently brought him worldwide fame.
Once, while visiting the rector, he met his daughter, Marie. A week later, Louis, in a written appeal to the rector, asked for the hand of his daughter. The happy young man received the consent. A year later, Louis and Marie Lauren got married and lived for a long 46 years.
A loving wife was an assistant and a reliable support for her husband. The couple had five children. But, unfortunately, typhoid fever claimed the lives of three. These personal tragedies will force the scientist to seek a cure for contagious infections. And in many years he will discover a life-saving vaccine! The scientist was a sincerely believing Catholic.
Illness and death
In the prime of his life (45 years old), the scientist became disabled. After that, his arm and leg did not move, but the microbiologist continued to work hard. Over the next 27 years, he suffered a series of strokes. The brilliant scientist died of uremia. This happened in September 1895. He was 72 years old.
Additional Information
Professor V. D. Solovyov
On the fiftieth anniversary of death
Louis Pasteur in the laboratory. On the photo there is an inscription: “In memory of the famous Mechnikov, the creator of the phagocytic theory, from the sincerely devoted Pasteur.
Ru and I.I. Mechnikov (Paris).
In Paris, on Rue Dutot, in a low, modest building surrounded by a cast-iron fence, the Pasteur Institute is located - one of the most interesting scientific institutions in the world. The institute was created according to the plan of the great scientist, whose name it bears. It was built in the last years of Pasteur's life with funds raised by international voluntary subscription. The Pasteur Institute is the center of microbiological science in France and has played an exceptional role in the development of this science. The best French bacteriologists worked within its walls, as well as many outstanding researchers from other countries, including Russian scientists. The world famous Russian zoologist and microbiologist Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov was at one time the Scientific Director of this Institute. Here, during the lifetime of Pasteur himself, N. F. Gamaleya, now an honorary member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, studied bacteriological skills.
The great scientist forever, even after his death, remained at his Institute. On the ground floor, in a small chapel, is his tomb. Above the entrance there is an inscription: “Here lies Pasteur”, and on the sides there are two dates: “1822” and “1895” - the years of birth and death of this wonderful person! Inside, on the marble walls, the most important stages of Louis Pasteur's activity and the years of his discoveries are marked: 1848 - molecular asymmetry. 1857 - enzymes, 1862 - so-called spontaneous generation, 1863 - observations on wine, 1865 - diseases of silkworms, 1871 - observations on beer, 1877 - contagious diseases, 1880 - preventive vaccinations, 1885 - prevention of rabies. This short chronological list reflects the history of the creative life of the great scientist.
The son of a tanner from Arbois, a small town in eastern France, and the great-grandson of a serf, Louis Pasteur began his scientific career by studying the theoretical issues of chemistry and chemical crystallography. While still a student at the Normal School in Paris, he began his research on two acids extracted from tartar - tartaric and grape. These two acids, similar in their chemical composition, differ in one feature: the salts of the first of them rotate the plane of polarization to the right, while the salts of the second are optically inactive. Studying the causes of this phenomenon, Pasteur found that during the crystallization of the double ammonium-sodium salt of tartaric acid, two types of crystals stand out, differing from each other in the presence of tiny areas or faces that had previously escaped the attention of researchers. These areas were only on one plane of the crystal and caused their incomplete symmetry: sometimes they were on the left, and sometimes on the right side. The pastor collected separately crystals of this salt with facets on the left side and crystals with facets on the right side. From those and other crystals, he isolated the free acid. It turned out that the solution of the first crystals rotates the plane of polarization to the left, while the solution of the second crystals rotates to the right.
In this way, for the first time in the history of chemistry, an optically active substance was artificially obtained from an inactive starting material. Previously, it was believed that the formation of optically active substances can occur only in living organisms. Pasteur explained the optical activity of the right and left tartaric acids by the asymmetry of their molecules. Thus, the concept of molecular asymmetry was introduced into science.
Further developing his method of artificial breakdown of chemical compounds, Pasteur used the action of mold fungi. This was the beginning of his subsequent work on microbes. Thus, purely chemical research contributed to the creation of one of the most important branches of biology - microbiology. The creation of this science is inextricably linked with the name of Pasteur. What is the cause of contagious diseases, how the infection is transmitted to man - this became clear only when the brilliant mind of Pastor revealed the secret of the driving force of fermentation and directed the development of science along a completely new path.
In the pre-Paster era, that is, 60-70 years ago, mankind had a very vague idea of what contagious diseases were. There were known severe epidemics of cholera, smallpox, plague, which the people called the "black death"; they carried millions of people to the grave. Many other epidemic diseases were known, but what are the causes that cause them, and what should be the measures to combat them, no one knew. How powerless practical medicine was at that time can be seen from the example of the Crimean War of 1854. In the French army, which numbered more than 300,000 soldiers, about 10,000 were killed, and 85,000 people died from diseases and from infectious complications of wounds. In other words, in the army, recruited from the most healthy and hardy men, more than a quarter of the entire composition fell victim to disease. The imperfection of surgery of that time is indicated by the enormous mortality from purulent complications of wounds. For example, 92% of the operated patients died during hip amputation. The main reason for such terrible losses was the ignorance of those rules of hygiene, which now seem to us the most elementary.
By the age of 35, Louis Pasteur was already a famous scientist. His work on the biological theory of fermentation dates back to this time. Facts were established with impeccable accuracy, showing that all fermentation processes are not simple chemical phenomena, as previously thought, but the result of the action of microorganisms. By a series of brilliant studies, Pasteur established the mechanism of various forms of fermentation, where living beings of negligible size, belonging either to yeast fungi or bacteria, turned out to be the active principle.
Later, when studying the processes of decay, Pasteur showed that they are also due to the vital activity of microbes. He also understood the great importance that microorganisms have in the transformation of complex protein substances into a primitive state. “If microscopic creatures disappeared from the surface of the earth, then it would quickly be cluttered with dead organic waste and all kinds of animal corpses and plant remains,” Pasteur wrote. “Without their participation, life would soon cease, as the work of death would remain unfinished.”
Where do these microorganisms, which play such a big role in nature, come from, what is their origin?
Pasteur's subsequent classical studies provided a clear answer to this question. It has been proved that there is no spontaneous generation of micro-organisms, that wherever we find micro-organisms they have been introduced from outside. It turned out that it is completely within the power of a person not only to cause, but also to prevent any of the phenomena of fermentation or decay. It turned out that there are microorganisms that can be used by humans, for example, to convert wort into alcohol, alcohol into vinegar. There are also harmful microorganisms, i.e., those that cause contagious diseases.
These remarkable discoveries of Pasteur not only found practical application in industry and agriculture, but they illuminated the whole of medicine with a new light and laid the foundation for a new science that studies microorganisms - microbiology.
The famous English surgeon, Joseph Lister, having understood the full depth of the ideas of his contemporary Pastor, made the following practical conclusion from them: if purulent complications of wounds depend on the action of microorganisms that have got in from the outside, from the air, then it means that for successful treatment it is necessary to prevent microbes from entering the wound. Thus, a new method of treating wounds was introduced into surgery, called the non-septic or antiseptic method, which was later replaced by a more advanced one - aseptic. The aseptic method consists in maintaining strict cleanliness and in observing conditions that strictly prevent the penetration of infection, i.e. microorganisms, from the environment. “Let me,” wrote Lister to Pastor, “thank you from the bottom of my heart for having opened my eyes to the existence of pyogenic microbes with your brilliant research and thus made it possible to successfully apply the antiseptic method in my work. If you ever come to Edinburgh, then I am sure that in our hospital you will receive true satisfaction, seeing in what a high degree humanity has been benefited by your labors.
Pasteur became interested in medicine, studying the processes of infection and putrefaction. He was particularly interested in the idea of the uniqueness of some infectious diseases. What is the cause of immunity, i.e., the body's ability to resist the action of infectious diseases?
In 1880, while investigating the disease of chickens - chicken cholera, he discovered the remarkable property of the causative agent of this disease - not only to cause the disease, but also to create immunity against it. If an artificial breeding or, as they say, a culture of a microbe has become less poisonous due to its long storage outside the body, then it can only cause a weak form of the disease. But after that, immunity is created - immunity to infection even by the strongest culture of microbes of a given disease. Thus, a method was found for the preparation of inoculations, or vaccines, that is, material for inoculations that protect against infectious diseases.
Although Pastor was already 58 years old at that time, it was precisely now that the period of his most outstanding discoveries began. The discovery of a vaccine against chicken cholera was followed by experiments on anthrax. Anthrax - a severe, often fatal disease of livestock, sometimes affecting humans as well - at that time brought enormous losses to livestock farms. Armed with his brilliant method of weakening the causative agents of a contagious disease and using them for vaccinations, Pasteur, after numerous laboratory experiments, began to manufacture a vaccine against anthrax. After hard and painstaking work, Pasteur managed to find the conditions under which anthrax microbes lose their toxicity, and to prepare a vaccine. It was tested in the famous public experiment on the Poulier-le-Fort farm in the spring of 1881. Having received 60 sheep and cows at his disposal, Pasteur made several preliminary vaccinations for half of them and then, in the presence of numerous spectators, infected both vaccinated and unvaccinated animals with anthrax in its deadliest form. All those present were warned that in 48 hours thirty animals should die, and the remaining half - previously vaccinated animals - would remain safe and sound. The prediction came true literally. The following picture presented itself to those gathered in Pouliers-le-Fort: 22 sheep lay dead, 2 died in front of the audience, and the remaining 6 animals died by the end of the day; 30 vaccinated remained alive and well.
The effect of this experience was exceptional. Newspapers around the world noted the unprecedented success of Pasteur. The method of inoculation developed by him received full recognition.
Following his victory over anthrax, Pasteur went ahead along the intended path. Now he took on a new, very difficult task - to find the germ of rabies. The mere name of this disease, always fatal to man, was terrifying. Medicine did not know any means of combating rabies, and it was well known; if a person is bitten by a rabid wolf or a dog and he falls ill, then there is no salvation, the bitten must die in severe torment of hydrophobia.
A long, intense search this time did not yield the usual result. The rabies microbe could not be found either in sick people or in sick animals. Now we know that the causative agent of this disease cannot be seen under a microscope, it belongs to the category of so-called filterable viruses and can only be detected by special research methods unknown in Pasteur's time. All the more so, Pasteur's gift of foresight seems great: having not found a microbe that causes hydrophobia, he did not stop his research and, through the most ingenious experiments and logical conclusions, discovered a way to combat rabies.
When studying dogs with rabies, it was found that the receptacle of the infection is the nervous system - the brain and spinal cord. If you take pieces of nervous tissue, crush them and then use a syringe to inject a healthy animal under the cranial bone, then typical rabies breaks down in it. Thus, it is possible to induce disease at the will of the experimenter. Following further his principle of weakening the infectious principle with its subsequent use to create immunity, Pastor found a way to weaken the terrible poison of rabies. His talented assistants Roux and Chamberlain removed the spinal cord from a rabbit that had died of rabies and then dried it for 14 days in a glass jar. So 14 varieties of dried rabies poison were prepared, with different strengths, ranging from almost harmless to poison of one day's drying, capable of killing an unvaccinated dog. But if these 14 doses are injected successively into dogs, starting from the weakest, and after that the vaccinated animals are infected with the deadly poison of rabies, the vaccinated dogs will not get sick.
After careful control of these experiments, the commission of the French Academy of Sciences came to the following conclusion: "if a dog is immunized with gradually increasing doses of the poisonous spinal cord of rabid rabbits, it can never get sick with rabies."
Victory seemed to be in Pasteur's hands, but there was still another question to be settled. Is it possible with such vaccinations to save from the disease not only before the penetration of the infection, but also after the bite of a rabid animal? In other words, is it possible not only to prevent the disease, but also to cure it? And this issue was soon resolved. The poison of rabies acts slowly. From the moment of the bite to the appearance of the first signs of the disease, it takes several weeks, and sometimes months. Therefore, it was possible to follow this deadly poison, slowly moving towards the central nervous system, to send a poison weakened, but with a faster effect. It is ahead of a strong poison and prepares the nervous system, making the body invulnerable.
This bold and brilliant idea of Pasteur was brilliantly realized and confirmed by numerous experiments. But experiments on animals, no matter how good they are, are not yet enough to judge the benefits of vaccinations for humans. And on July 4, 1885, the first injection of a weakened poison of rabies into a person was made. It was nine-year-old Josef Meister, an unfortunate boy who had been severely bitten by a mad dog. Day after day, the first patient received all 14 shots. Vaccinations saved the boy from a fatal disease.
At this time, Pasteur was 63 years old. This was the pinnacle of his scientific activity and fame; His name became the property of all mankind.
Pasteur's services to science are great, and it is impossible to convey in a brief essay the full significance of his discoveries. Microbiology, of which he is rightfully considered the founder, has now developed into a vast independent branch of the natural sciences, playing an exceptionally important role not only in medicine, but also in veterinary medicine and agriculture.
In medicine, Pasteur's work, as we have already seen, is of great importance for the development of surgery and for the fight against infectious diseases. Modern immunology, that is, the doctrine of immunity to infectious diseases, is entirely based on the method of immunization discovered by Pasteur: the use of pathogens weakened in their toxicity for vaccinations that protect against infection. The method of protection against rabies developed by Pasteur saved mankind from the horrors of this terrible disease. All over the world, special institutions are organized, the so-called Pasteur stations, where they prepare material for vaccination against rabies. It is interesting to recall that the second Pasteur station in the world, after the one in Paris, was organized in Russia by Russian scientists I. I. Mechnikov and N. F. Gamaleya.
The importance of Pasteur in medicine is also great because he widely introduced the experimental (experimental) method of research into the study of medical issues. This method has armed scientists with that exact knowledge of disease processes, which was completely absent in the pre-Pasterian era, and has brought so many brilliant successes to the present time.
Half a century of Pasteur's scientific activity, full of hard work and endless searches, passed under the banner of the creative power of thought and the amazing ability to turn his ideas into undeniably proven facts through a long series of experiments. He taught his students: “Don't say anything that you can't prove simply and beyond doubt. Bow before the spirit of criticism. By itself, it does not reveal new ideas or inspire great deeds. But without it, nothing is solid. He always has the last word. This demand, which I present to you, and which you will present to your students, is the heaviest one can be presented to a researcher who is making discoveries. To be sure that you have discovered an important scientific fact, to burn with a feverish desire to notify the whole world about it and to ask yourself for days, weeks, sometimes years; to enter into a struggle with oneself, to exert all one's strength in order to destroy the fruits of one's own labors and not to proclaim the result obtained until one has tried all the hypotheses that contradict it - yes, this is a difficult feat. But, on the other hand, when, after so much effort, you achieve complete certainty, you experience one of the highest joys that are only available to the human soul.
Pastor's life is a perfect confirmation of his words. Devotion to science and selflessness were excellent traits of his character. “In the midst of one of his works,” recalls K. A. Timiryazev, “which, as always, absorbed all his physical strength, since intensified mental work was usually complicated by insomnia, the doctor who treated him, seeing that all exhortations were in vain, turned out to be forced to threaten him with the words: "You are threatened, perhaps by death, and a second blow, probably." Pasteur thought for a moment and calmly replied: “I cannot interrupt my work. I already foresee its end: come what may, I will fulfill my duty.
Pasteur died on September 23, 1895 at the age of 73. Since then, 50 years have passed. Over the years, natural science has gone far ahead in its development. And in the progress of science, which we are witnessing, the unfading glory of the name of Luke Pasteur illuminates the way for new searches and new discoveries.
Louis Pasteur was born on September 18, 1822 in the small French town of Doyle. His father, a veteran of the Napoleonic Wars, made a living by running a small leather workshop. The head of the family never finished school and could barely read and write, but he wanted a different future for his son. The tanner spared no expense, and after graduating from high school, young Louis was sent to college, where he continued his education. They say that it was difficult to find a more diligent student in all of France. Pasteur showed unprecedented perseverance, and in letters to the sisters he talked about how much success in the sciences depends on "desire and work." No one was surprised when, after graduating from college, Louis decided to take the exam at the Higher Normal School in Paris.
Having successfully passed the entrance examinations, Pasteur became a student. The money that the leather workshop brought in was not enough for education, so the young man had to earn extra money as a teacher. But neither work nor passion for painting (Pasteur received a bachelor of arts degree, painted many portraits that were highly appreciated by artists of that time) could not distract the young man from his passion for the natural sciences.
Vaccination of a boy bitten by a rabid dog. Photo: www.globallookpress.com
Already at the age of 26, Louis Pasteur received the title of professor of physics for his discoveries in the field of the structure of tartaric acid crystals. However, in the process of studying organic substances, the young scientist realized that his vocation was not physics at all, but chemistry and biology.
In 1826, Louis Pasteur received an invitation to work at the University of Strasbourg. While visiting Rector Laurent, Pasteur met his daughter Marie. And a week after they met, the rector received a letter in which the young professor asked for the hand of his daughter. Pasteur saw Marie only once, but he was completely sure of his choice. In a letter, he honestly informed the bride's father that "except for good health and a good heart" he had nothing to offer Marie. However, Mr. Laurent for some reason believed in the happy future of his daughter and gave permission for the wedding. Intuition did not fail - the Pasteurs lived in harmony for many years, and in the person of Marie, the scientist found not only his beloved wife, but also a faithful assistant.
Wine and chickens
One of the first works that brought Pasteur fame was a work on fermentation processes. In 1854, Louis Pasteur was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the University of Lille. There he continued the study of tartaric acids, which had begun at the Higher Normal School. Once, a wealthy wine merchant knocked on Pasteur's house and asked the scientist to help him. Local winemakers could not understand why wine and beer spoiled. Pasteur enthusiastically set about solving an unusual problem. Examining the must under a microscope, Pasteur discovered that in addition to yeast fungi, there are also microorganisms in the form of sticks in wine. In the vessels where the sticks were present, the wine turned sour. And if the fungi were responsible for the process of alcoholic fermentation, then the sticks were the culprits of spoiling wine and beer. Thus, one of the greatest discoveries was made - Pasteur explained not only the nature of fermentation, but also made the assumption that microbes do not originate by themselves, but enter the body from outside. To solve the problem of wine spoilage, Pasteur began by creating an environment free of bacteria. The scientist heated the wort to a temperature of 60 degrees to kill all microorganisms, and wine and beer were prepared on the basis of this wort. This technique is still used in industry today and is called pasteurization in honor of its creator.
Louis Pasteur in his laboratory. Photo: www.globallookpress.com
Despite the fact that this discovery brought recognition to Pasteur, those times were difficult for the scientist - three of Pasteur's five daughters died of typhoid fever. This tragedy prompted the professor to study infectious diseases. Examining the contents of abscesses, wounds and ulcers, Pasteur discovered many infectious agents, including staphylococcus and streptococcus.
Pasteur's laboratory in those days resembled a chicken farm - the scientist identified the causative agent of chicken cholera and tried to find a way to counteract this disease. The professor was helped by chance. The culture with cholera microbes was forgotten in the thermostat. After the dried virus was injected into the chickens, they, to the scientist's surprise, did not die, but suffered only a mild form of the disease. And when the scientist infected them again with a fresh culture, the chickens did not develop a single symptom of cholera. Pasteur realized that introducing weakened microbes into the body could prevent further infection. Thus, vaccination was born. Pasteur named his discovery in memory of the scientist Edward Jenner, who, to prevent smallpox, injected patients with the blood of cows infected with a form of this disease that is safe for humans (the word "vaccine" comes from the Latin vacca - "cow").
After a successful experiment with chickens, Pasteur developed a vaccine against anthrax. The prevention of this disease in cattle saved the French government a lot of money. Pasteur was given a life pension and was elected to the French Academy of Sciences.
Mad Dogs
In 1881, a scientist witnessed the death of a five-year-old girl bitten by a rabid dog. What he saw impressed Pasteur so much that he set about creating a vaccine against this disease with great zeal. Unlike most microorganisms that the scientist had to deal with before, the rabies virus could not exist on its own - the pathogen lived only in brain cells. How to get a weakened form of the virus - this question worried the scientist. Pasteur spent days and nights in the laboratory infecting rabbits with rabies and then dissecting their brains. He personally collected the saliva of sick animals directly from the mouth.
The professor personally collected the saliva of rabid animals directly from the mouth Photo: www.globallookpress.com
Relatives seriously feared for the health of the professor - it left much to be desired even without overwhelming loads. 13 years earlier, when Pasteur was only 45, he suffered a severe stroke, which turned the scientist into an invalid. He never recovered from his illness - his arm remained paralyzed, and his leg was dragging. But this did not prevent Pasteur from making the greatest discovery of his life. From the dried brain of a rabbit, he created a vaccine against rabies.
The scientist did not risk conducting tests on people until the mother of a boy who had been badly bitten by a rabid dog approached him. The child had no chance to survive, and then the scientist decided to administer a vaccine to him. The child recovered. Then, thanks to the Pasteur vaccine, 16 peasants bitten by a rabid wolf were saved. Since then, the effectiveness of rabies vaccination has not been questioned.
Pasteur died in 1895 at the age of 72. For his services, he received about 200 orders. Pasteur had awards from almost every country in the world.
"Benefactor of mankind" - this is how the French government called the biologist and chemist Louis Pasteur. The contribution of the French scientist can hardly be overestimated, because he proved the microbiological basis of the fermentation process and the emergence of a number of diseases, came up with a way to combat pathogens - pasteurization and vaccination. Until today, the discoveries of the founder of immunology and microbiology save the lives of millions of people.
Childhood and youth
The future microbiologist was born in the city of Doyle (France) on September 18, 1822. Louis' father, Jean Pasteur, was noted for his participation in the Napoleonic Wars, and later opened a leather workshop. The head of the family was illiterate, but he tried to give his son a good education.
Louis successfully graduated from high school, and then, with the support of his father, began to study at college. The boy was remarkable for his amazing diligence, which amazed the teachers. Pasteur believed that one must persevere in studies and, in correspondence with the sisters, pointed out that success mainly depends on work and the desire to learn.
Upon completion of his college studies, Louis moved to Paris to enroll in the Higher Normal School. In 1843, a talented guy easily overcame the entrance exams and four years later received a diploma from a prestigious educational institution.
In parallel, Pasteur devoted a lot of time to painting and achieved high results. The young artist entered the reference books as a great portrait painter of the 19th century. At the age of 15, Louis painted portraits of his mother, sisters and many friends. In 1840, Pasteur even received a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Biology
Despite the versatility of talents, Louis Pasteur chose to engage exclusively in science. At the age of 26, the scientist became a professor of physics thanks to the discovery of the structure of tartaric acid crystals. However, while studying organic matter, Louis realized that his true calling lay in the study of biology and chemistry, not physics.
Pasteur worked for some time at the Dijon Lyceum, but in 1848 he went to the University of Strasbourg. At a new job, the biologist began to study the processes of fermentation, which later brought him celebrity.
In 1854, the scientist holds the position of dean at the University of Lille (Faculty of Natural Sciences), but does not stay there for a long time. Two years later, Louis Pasteur goes to Paris to work at the alma mater - the Higher Normal School as director of studies. In the new place, Pasteur carried out successful reforms, showing brilliant administrative abilities. He introduced a rigid system of examinations, which increased the level of knowledge of students and the prestige of the educational institution.
In parallel, the microbiologist continued to investigate tartaric acids. After examining the wort with a microscope, Louis Pasteur revealed that the fermentation process is not chemical in nature, as Justus von Liebig claimed. The scientist discovered that this process is associated with the life and activity of yeast fungi that feed and multiply in the fermenting liquid.
During 1860-1862, the microbiologist concentrated on studying the theory of spontaneous generation of microorganisms, which at that time was followed by many researchers. To do this, Pasteur took the nutrient mass, heated it to a temperature at which microorganisms die, and then placed it in a special flask with a “swan neck”.
As a result, no matter how much this vessel with the nutrient mass stood in the air, life did not arise under such conditions, since bacterial spores remained on the bends of the long neck. If the neck was broken off or the bends were rinsed with a liquid medium, then microorganisms soon began to multiply. Consequently, the French scientist refuted the dominant theory and proved that microbes cannot spontaneously generate and are introduced from outside each time. For this discovery, the French Academy of Sciences awarded Pasteur a special prize in 1862.
Pasteurization
The breakthrough in the scientific research of the scientist was facilitated by the need to solve a practical problem. In 1864, winemakers turned to Pasteur with a request to help understand the causes of wine spoilage. After studying the composition of the drink, the microbiologist discovered that it contained not only yeast fungi, but also other microorganisms that led to spoilage of the product. Then the scientist thought about how to get rid of this problem. The researcher suggested heating the wort to 60 degrees, after which the microorganisms die.
The experiments of Louis Pasteur The method proposed by Pasteur for the processing of wort began to be used in the manufacture of beer and wine, as well as in other branches of the food industry. Today, the technique described is called pasteurization named after the discoverer.
The described discoveries brought fame to the French scientist, but personal tragedy did not allow Pasteur to calmly rejoice in his achievements. Three children of the microbiologist died of typhoid fever. Under the influence of tragic events, the scientist began to study infectious diseases.
Vaccination
Louis Pasteur examined wounds, abscesses and ulcers, as a result of which he identified a number of infectious agents (for example, streptococcus and staphylococcus aureus). The microbiologist also studied chicken cholera and tried to find a counteraction to this disease. The decision came to the famous professor by accident.
Louis Pasteur's vaccine saved many lives The scientist left the culture with cholera germs in the thermostat and forgot about them. When the dried virus was injected into chickens, the birds did not die, but suffered a milder form of the disease. Pasteur then re-infected the chickens with fresh cultures of the virus, but the birds were unaffected. Based on these experiments, the scientist discovered a way to avoid a number of diseases: it is necessary to introduce weakened pathogenic microbes into the body.
This is how vaccination arose (from the Latin vacca - “cow”). This name was used by the discoverer in honor of the famous scientist Edward Jenner. The latter sought to prevent people from getting smallpox, so he transfused the blood of cows infected with a form of smallpox that was harmless to humans.
An experiment with chickens helped a microbiologist create a vaccine to fight anthrax. The subsequent use of this vaccine has saved the French government huge amounts of money. In addition, the new discovery secured Pasteur membership in the Academy of Sciences and a lifetime pension.
In 1881, Pasteur witnessed the death of a girl from the bite of a rabid dog. Impressed by the tragedy, the scientist decided to create a vaccine against a deadly disease. But the microbiologist discovered that the rabies virus existed only in brain cells. There was a problem obtaining a weakened form of the virus.
The scientist did not leave the laboratory for days and conducted experiments on rabbits. The microbiologist first infected the animals with rabies and then dissected their brains. At the same time, Pasteur exposed himself to mortal danger by collecting infected saliva from the mouths of rabbits. However, a talented scientist managed to extract a rabies vaccine from the dried brain of a rabbit. Many are sure that this discovery was the main achievement of the outstanding microbiologist.
For some time, Louis Pasteur hesitated to use the vaccine on humans. But in 1885, the mother of 9-year-old Josef Meister came to him, who was bitten by a rabid dog. The child had no chance of surviving, so the vaccine was his last option. As a result, the boy survived, which testified to the effectiveness of Pasteur's discovery. A little later, with the help of a vaccine, 16 people bitten by a rabid wolf were saved. Since then, the vaccine has been consistently used to fight rabies.
Personal life
In 1848, Louis Pasteur began working at the University of Strasbourg. Soon the young scientist was invited to visit Rector Laurent, where he met the daughter of his boss, Marie. A week later, a talented microbiologist wrote a letter to the rector asking for the girl's hand. Although Louis only spoke to Marie once, he had no doubts about the correctness of the choice.
Pasteur honestly confessed to the father of his chosen one that he had only a kind heart and good health. As can be judged from the photo of the scientist, the man was not distinguished by his beauty, and Louis did not have wealth or advantageous kinship.
But the rector believed the French biologist and gave his consent. The young people got married on May 29, 1849. Subsequently, the couple lived together for 46 years. Marie became not just a wife for her husband, but the first assistant and reliable support. The couple had five children, three of whom died from a typhoid epidemic.
Death
Louis Pasteur suffered a stroke at the age of 45, after which he remained disabled. The scientist's arm and leg did not move, but the man continued to work hard. In addition, the microbiologist was often exposed to danger during the experiments, which made the family worry about his life.
The great scientist died on September 28, 1895 from complications after several strokes. At that time, Louis Pasteur was 72 years old. First, the remains of the microbiologist rested in Notre Dame de Paris, and then were transferred to the Pasteur Institute.
Even during his lifetime, the scientist received awards from almost all countries of the world (almost 200 orders). In 1892, the French government presented a medal specially for the day of the 70th anniversary of the microbiologist with the signature "Benefactor of Mankind". In 1961, a crater on the Moon was named after Pasteur, and in 1995 a stamp with the image of a scientist was issued in Belgium.
Today, more than 2 thousand streets in many countries of the world bear the name of the outstanding microbiologist: the USA, Argentina, Ukraine, Iran, Italy, Cambodia, etc. In St. Petersburg (Russia) there is the Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology. Pasteur.
Bibliography
- Louis Pasteur. Etudes sur le Vin. - 1866.
- Louis Pasteur. Etudes sur le Vinaigre. - 1868.
- Louis Pasteur. Etudes sur la Maladie des Vers à Soie (2 volumes). - 1870.
- Louis Pasteur. Quelques Reflexions sur la Science en France. - 1871.
- Louis Pasteur. Etudes sur la Bière. - 1976.
- Louis Pasteur. Les Microbes organises, leur rôle dans la Fermentation, la Putréfaction et la Contagion. - 1878.
- Louis Pasteur. Discours de Reception de M.L. Pasteur à l "Académie française. - 1882.
- Louis Pasteur. Treatment de la Rage. - 1886.
