In 1945, Sir Alexander Fleming, Ernst Boris Chain, and Sir Howard Walter Florey receive the Nobel Prize in Physiology (medicine) for their work on creating penicillin, but Norman Heatley, who also helped develop penicillin, did not receive the Nobel Prize for his work. If it were not for Heatley, the other scientists he worked with, and the scientists before him, the creation of the drug we know as penicillin today would not have been created. Penicillin is considered the first antibiotic drug in modern medical history that created a pinnacle turning point in pharmacology; its creation opened the door to many more antibiotics to be created. But what did this miraculous drug come from? Many would think it came from a rare substance that was
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He did not begin to continue research on Penicillium until 1938 when he viewed Fleming’s paper on the mold. Alongside Florey was Doctor Ernst Chain who fought with Florey on who deserved credit for this new drug. During the summer of 1940, Chain and Florey began experiments on fifty mice infected with streptococcus. In this experiment, twenty-five mice were given penicillin and the other twenty-five did not. The results of the experiment showed that the mice given penicillin were cured and the others died a slow, painful death. This experiment showed Florey all the possibilities penicillin had, but the drug had the major drawback that it was unable to be produce in a practicable manner. It took 2,000 Liters of mold to produce enough pure penicillin to treat a single case of sepsis in a person. In September 1940, the first case using penicillin as a treatment occurred. Albert Alexander, an Oxford constable, was working in his rose garden when a thorn scratched his face. The scratch became infected with streptococci and staphylococci and spread to the eye and scalp; he was admitted to Radcliffe Infirmary and treated with Sulfa drugs. The medicine did not work and developed abcesses on his eye, lungs, and shoulders. Florey and Chain heard about Alexander’s case and contacted Radcliffe to ask them if they would like to test out their “purified penicillin”. …show more content…
Upon examination, Hunt learned that the mold was Penicillium chrysogeum. As this mold was furthered examined, researchers learned that this strain Penicillium yielded 200 times more penicillin compared to Penicillium notatum. Like other drugs, Penicillium chrysogeum required changes through mutation causing x-rays; this caused the mold to yield 1,000 times more purified penicillin than Penicillium notatum. This new type of penicillin went into testing and in March of 1942, the first successful patient to be treated with penicillin occurred. Anne Miller, a Connecticut woman, suffered a miscarriage; this caused a streptococcal infection which led to blood poisoning. She was admitted to the New Haven Hospital and stayed there for a month. She suffered states of euphoria and temperatures near 107 degrees. Doctors tried treatments such as surgeries, blood transfusions, and Sulfa drugs. Finally, doctors got a hold of penicillin, at the time still an experimental drug, and injected her. Overnight, her condition improved and she made a full recovery. This and many other cases led to its release in
He did not begin to continue research on Penicillium until 1938 when he viewed Fleming’s paper on the mold. Alongside Florey was Doctor Ernst Chain who fought with Florey on who deserved credit for this new drug. During the summer of 1940, Chain and Florey began experiments on fifty mice infected with streptococcus. In this experiment, twenty-five mice were given penicillin and the other twenty-five did not. The results of the experiment showed that the mice given penicillin were cured and the others died a slow, painful death. This experiment showed Florey all the possibilities penicillin had, but the drug had the major drawback that it was unable to be produce in a practicable manner. It took 2,000 Liters of mold to produce enough pure penicillin to treat a single case of sepsis in a person. In September 1940, the first case using penicillin as a treatment occurred. Albert Alexander, an Oxford constable, was working in his rose garden when a thorn scratched his face. The scratch became infected with streptococci and staphylococci and spread to the eye and scalp; he was admitted to Radcliffe Infirmary and treated with Sulfa drugs. The medicine did not work and developed abcesses on his eye, lungs, and shoulders. Florey and Chain heard about Alexander’s case and contacted Radcliffe to ask them if they would like to test out their “purified penicillin”. …show more content…
Upon examination, Hunt learned that the mold was Penicillium chrysogeum. As this mold was furthered examined, researchers learned that this strain Penicillium yielded 200 times more penicillin compared to Penicillium notatum. Like other drugs, Penicillium chrysogeum required changes through mutation causing x-rays; this caused the mold to yield 1,000 times more purified penicillin than Penicillium notatum. This new type of penicillin went into testing and in March of 1942, the first successful patient to be treated with penicillin occurred. Anne Miller, a Connecticut woman, suffered a miscarriage; this caused a streptococcal infection which led to blood poisoning. She was admitted to the New Haven Hospital and stayed there for a month. She suffered states of euphoria and temperatures near 107 degrees. Doctors tried treatments such as surgeries, blood transfusions, and Sulfa drugs. Finally, doctors got a hold of penicillin, at the time still an experimental drug, and injected her. Overnight, her condition improved and she made a full recovery. This and many other cases led to its release in