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THE HISTORY
OF PENICILLIN
HISTORIA
PENICYLINY
ukasz Mucha
zahariash@o2.pl
Penicillin was the first antibiotic discovered by
man.
Healing effects of penicillin became an impulse
for further research, which effected great progress
of many different fields like chemistry, bacteriology, pharmacology and medicine. In this article I
would like to tell You about some properties, circumstances of discovery of this uncommon substance and the history of its discoverer.
Sir Alexander Fleming was born
06.08.1881 in Lochfield, Scotland. His
father was a pharmacist. He attended
schools in Louden M oor, Darvel and
Academy in Kilmarnock, before he
moved to London. There, in 1901, he
started medical studies at St. M arys
Hospital School. As a student he received a medal for his dissertation
about sharp bacterial infections. After
finishing school with distinction in
1906 he started research work there
under the leadership of Sir Almroth
Wright the outstanding expert on vaccines, which
lasted till 1914. During World War I Fleming was
enlisted to M edical Corps, where he acquired the
captain rank. In the army he had many occasions to
see infected wounds, which made him discover
that many drugs destroy the human organism more
than bacteria. After the war in 1918 Fleming returned to Saint M arys, where he received the titles
of Professor of School and Emeritus Professor of
Bacteriology, University of London. Even in his
youth, professor Fleming was interested in the influence of bacteria on human organism. Luckily he
was able to continue research due to his military
career. After demobilization, he started searching
for an antibacterial substance that would be nontoxic and could be injected to animals. He was a
member of most medical and scientifical societies
in the world, he was also awarded a honoris causa
doctorate of more that 30 American and European
universities and titled as chief Doy-gei-tau of
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HISTORY OF SCIENCE
One of the most important properties of penicillin is that it does not kill leukocytes - white blood
corpuscles, as pharmaceuticals used in those days
did. Antibacterial remedies used at that time (like
phenol) were lethal for leucocytes and microbes
quickly gained resistance to them. Penicillin is not
toxic, so it cannot be overdosed or you cant get
poisoned with it. What penicillin does, is restrain-
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HISTORY OF SCIENCE
transpeptidas e,
which is synthesizing bacterial cell wall.
This is a very
important element of a bacterium. The substances needed for cell to grow are diffused
through it and it makes all the microbes organs
stay in their place. If the osmosis (process of diffusion through cell membranes) stops or if the bacterias intestines go outside, the cell will die. In
some infections dose of 50000 units of penicillin is
sufficient, but without care a patient can receive
100 millions units. There is danger however, of
giving to small dose!. With dose of penicillin insufficient to kill bacteria they can become resistant
very fast. This resistance is meant by possibility of
bacteria to produce -lactamases enzymes capable of decomposing penicillin. With some people
penicillin may cause anaphylactic shock, the cause
of which is allergy to this compound. It is true, that
penicillin is an amazing cure, but unfortunately till
1940 it could not been mass produced. Then two
British chemists: Sir Ernest Boris Chain and Sir
Howard Walter Florey worked out a process of acquiring clean penicillin from the mold. This discovery effected in mass scale penicillin production.
Great factories was built to grow penicillium notatum. For their discoveries Sir Alexander Fleming, Sir Ernest Boris Chain and Sir Howard Walter
Florey were in 1945 honored with Noble Prize for
the discovery of penicillin and its curative effect
in various infectious diseases".
From the chemical side, penicillins are all
group of chemical compounds, and this most useful is penicillin G:
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HISTORY OF SCIENCE
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HISTORY OF SCIENCE
M olecule of penicillin G.
Legend:
white - hydrogen
yellow sulfur
red oxygen
blue nitrogen
cyan - carbon
Bibliography
1. Sownik Chemii, Wyd. Prszyski i S-ka
2. Chemia Organiczna, Witold Danikiewicz
3. Encyklopedia, Powszechne Wydawnictwo
Gutenberga
4. M aa Encyklopedia Zdrowia, Pastwowe
Wydawnictwo Naukowe
5. Encyklopedia Nauki, Pastwowe
wydawnictwo Naukowe
6. wiat Wiedzy, Wydawnictwo M arshala
Cavendisha
7. The 100. A Ranking of the M ost Influential
Personns in History, M ichael Hart
8. http://www.encyklopedia.pwn.pl/
9. http://www.nobel.se/
10. http://www.wiem.onet.pl/
Czsteczka penicyliny G.
Legenda:
biay - wodr
ty siarka
czerwony tlen
niebieski azot
bkitny - wgiel
Bibliografia
1. Sownik Chemii, Wyd. Prszyski i S-ka
2. Chemia Organiczna, Witold Danikiewicz
3. Encyklopedia, Powszechne Wydawnictwo
Gutenberga
4. M aa Encyklopedia Zdrowia, Pastwowe
Wydawnictwo Naukowe
5. Encyklopedia Nauki, Pastwowe
wydawnictwo Naukowe
6. wiat Wiedzy, Wydawnictwo M arshala
Cavendisha
7. The 100. A Ranking of the M ost Influential
Personns in History, M ichael Hart
8. http://www.encyklopedia.pwn.pl/
9. http://www.nobel.se/
10. http://www.wiem.onet.pl/
Acknowledgements
Thanks are due to the teachers mgr Ewa
Bramora and mgr Barbara Kucharska for their support in consultation.
Konsultacja:
M gr Ewa Bramora, mgr Barbara Kucharska
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