In 1943 a lifesaving antibiotic would cost only 55 cents per dose. Penicillin is one of the most well-known and most used antibiotics. This unique form of mold was discovered completely on accident and was discovered by several scientists over a course of 52 years. The events that led to the discovery of penicillin happened throughout the years of 1896 to1948.
A significant amount of lives have been saved since penicillin was discovered. A bacteriologist by the name of Alexander Fleming discovered this antibiotic on accident. Fleming was known for having a messy lab, so when he came back from a month long vacation it was no surprise that everything was covered in mold. Fleming did not notice the mold that would become a life saver immediately …show more content…
It helps the body to fight off harmful and infectious diseases. “Antibiotics are natural substances that are released by bacteria and fungi” (Bellis 123). Penicillin was starting to gain interest by other scientists at the perfect time, around the start of World War II. Connors wrote that, “A drug was needed to reduce bacterial infections in soldiers’ wounds” (126). Dr. Howard Florey and scientist Norman Heatley began to study penicillin because they believed that it had medical potential, and they were right. These British scientists were sent down to the United States to work in the Peoria Lab, “where scientists were already working on fermentation methods to increase the growth rate of fungal cultures” (Bellis 123). Finally, in 1941, Andrew J. Moyer the Peoria Lab’s nutrition of mold expert and Heatley had succeeded. Bellis wrote that they had accomplished, “increasing the yields of penicillin 10 times” (124). In 1948, Moyer was given a patent for the production of penicillin. “Perhaps the most compelling fact about penicillin is that it went on to save hundreds of thousands of lives during World War II” (Lane 122). Howard and Fleming both went on to win the Nobel Prize in
A significant amount of lives have been saved since penicillin was discovered. A bacteriologist by the name of Alexander Fleming discovered this antibiotic on accident. Fleming was known for having a messy lab, so when he came back from a month long vacation it was no surprise that everything was covered in mold. Fleming did not notice the mold that would become a life saver immediately …show more content…
It helps the body to fight off harmful and infectious diseases. “Antibiotics are natural substances that are released by bacteria and fungi” (Bellis 123). Penicillin was starting to gain interest by other scientists at the perfect time, around the start of World War II. Connors wrote that, “A drug was needed to reduce bacterial infections in soldiers’ wounds” (126). Dr. Howard Florey and scientist Norman Heatley began to study penicillin because they believed that it had medical potential, and they were right. These British scientists were sent down to the United States to work in the Peoria Lab, “where scientists were already working on fermentation methods to increase the growth rate of fungal cultures” (Bellis 123). Finally, in 1941, Andrew J. Moyer the Peoria Lab’s nutrition of mold expert and Heatley had succeeded. Bellis wrote that they had accomplished, “increasing the yields of penicillin 10 times” (124). In 1948, Moyer was given a patent for the production of penicillin. “Perhaps the most compelling fact about penicillin is that it went on to save hundreds of thousands of lives during World War II” (Lane 122). Howard and Fleming both went on to win the Nobel Prize in