Louis Pasteur
Louis Pasteur was a French microbiologists and chemist born on December 27th of 1822 in Dole, France. Coming from a long family line of tanners, Pasteur strayed from this traditional path to continue his higher level of schooling, which he gradually proved to be very successful in. Pasteur would go on to be one of the most influential men of his time, paving the way for ingenuity and scientific advancement, inspiring not only other colleagues but the whole of mankind, still, to this day. Pasteur’s discoveries in his field of work were so remarkable that he is often and most notably considered the “father of microbiology.” Louis Pasteur’s groundbreaking microbiological and medicinal discoveries have led civilization into new directions of health and sanitation in all sectors of life.
Louis Pasteur was the man who disproved spontaneous generation, which at the time was the theory that held that the apparent production of living organisms was derived from non-living organisms. This basically means that people believed things such as dirt or a plank of raw meat could spontaneously turn into a swarm of flies, germs, or bacteria. Pasteur proved the main flaw in spontaneous generation was the “spontaneity” of it. Pasteur carried out his experiments that showed microorganisms could not possibly develop unless the affected area was contaminated as well. Pasteur conducted a famous experiment to disprove the theory of spontaneous generation. This experiment was to fill two flasks with the same type of broth. One flask was then exposed to the air and the microbial organisms in the air, while the other flask was completely sealed off from any oxygen, and microorganisms. In this experiment, the flask which was sealed off did not grow any microorganisms because it was not exposed to them, while the flask exposed to air did grow organisms because it was exposed to the air and the microbes. This led Pasteur to develop his conclusion that microorganisms can only develop once they have had the proper environment to do so. The microbes must have a means to travel, in this case through the way of oxygen, and only in this way would they be able to develop, disproving spontaneous generation altogether and paving the way to live-saving antiseptic discoveries and to help further prove germ theory.
As stated on britannica.com, germ theory is: “…in medicine, the theory that certain diseases are caused by the invasion of the body by microorganisms, organisms too small to be seen except through a microscope.” This theory, devised by the aid of Louis Pasteur in the mid-1800’s changed everything in the fields of microbiology, medicine, and science, and especially for that of civilizations since its becoming. With the creation of germ theory, it was now possible to rule out the past popular and widely recognized theory of spontaneous generation. It would no longer be popular belief that microorganisms could appear from just any substance, but that these organisms had to grow from other organisms. Because of this, people, doctors, and medical staff could now more accurately determine the cause of infection and disease, making it easier to locate the problem, diagnose and proceed to treat or cure. Now, people were aware of the microscopic bacteria growing around them. Pasteur discovered that these tiny microbes could be killed by first sterilizing either the affected area or the instruments being used to prevent the bacteria from spreading. To sterilize, Pasteur found that the application of certain acids or extreme heat to kill the bacterias was effective in treating the problem. The bacteria could now be dealt with in a new way since the issue had been accurately identified. This process was exponential in the ability to save numerous amounts of lives in a crucial period in time. In cases of war, extreme casualties and epidemics, this discovery was, of course, groundbreaking. With these discoveries, people now had a fighting chance to kill off bacterias and heal themselves. What now is typically a minor medical issue, thanks to Louis Pasteur, used to be a death sentence. Before germ theory, treating an infection was ultimately futile. No one accurately knew where the microbes were coming from or how they grew, they thought just as well that the body was the microorganisms, when in reality it was simply hosting them to grow and destroy tissues and cells. With a microscope, people could now see the minuscule bacteria, they could witness it grow, multiply, and spread to more areas. In this way, people could also devise ways to attend to the problem at hand. Now, it was known to sterilize the areas infected by the growing bacteria and prevent it from spreading to other parts. This completely changed the medical field.
Because of his much-appraised work and accomplishments in the medical field, Pasteur has been proved to be an inspiration for some of the best works in medicine up to date. This theory, germ theory, proved by Pasteur, inspired Joseph Lister, a renowned British surgeon and close colleague of Louis Pasteur, to apply techniques of sterilization to his own work in surgery. By doing so, sterilizing his patients to prevent bacteria growth before operating on them reduced their chances of obtaining deadly infections and thus improved their recovery time, decreased complications from surgery, and ultimately bettered their overall chances for survival. Without Louis Pasteur, people such as Joseph Lister may have never made these advancements which have also greatly contributed to the medical world of society.
Not only did Louis Pasteur disprove spontaneous generation and successfully help prove the germ theory but he is also the man who is credited to first introduce the use of live viruses in vaccinations. Pasteur’s work with using live viruses to create vaccinations not only changed the medical world, yet again, but also helped him to create multiple effective vaccines that would cure rabies and anthrax viruses, which at the time were both dilemmas. Rabies and anthrax viruses were both presents in animals and in humans, making them both more complex for scientists to uncover and treat. Pasteur first used chickens to test his theories of the effectiveness of live viruses, first by inoculating the chickens with a strain of the live virus, and then by exposing them to the actual virus. During the experiment, the chickens never fell sick, even after the chickens were exposed to the virus. After completing these tests, Pasteur realized the live virus strain prevented the chickens from acquiring the actual virus, thus creating the first safe version of a live virus vaccination that we use modified versions of today.
The discovery of rabies and anthrax vaccination has contributed tremendously to our modern society. Rabies vaccinations are readily available to people if they have been bitten, will, or have come in contact with affected animals. The vaccinations are also advised to people who will be traveling to areas where these affected animals are present. Because of the vaccination, anthrax is no longer a concern in first world countries such as Europe and the United States. Now, anthrax is mostly a concern in regions such as the Middle East, Africa, and South America. Because of the low risk for the virus, vaccinations for anthrax are most frequently given to military and government personnel who intend to be traveling to areas such as the Middle East or Africa. Without the discovery of these vaccinations, travel and expansion could have been greatly prohibited. Cleanliness and health safety of regions and countries could have been greatly diminished and the overall infrastructure of our civilizations could be completely different than we know them today. We can attribute one less stress in the fast-paced world of today to these vaccinations, thanks to Pasteur and his discoveries.
One of the most recognizable achievements made by Louis Pasteur may arguably be that of pasteurization. Pasteurization, which is the name that was given to the process after Pasteur himself, is where bacteria is removed from a substance, usually liquids, by heating the fluid to a boil and then cooling it back down again, destroying the bacterias and making it safe for human consumption. The process of pasteurization gets rid of any harmful pathogens and bacteria that normally could have made a person ill or proved to be fatal upon eating or drinking. Today, we regularly pasteurize everything from milk and cheese, to juices and alcohol, which was what Pasteur first tested pasteurization on April 20th of 1862, (biography.com Editors, N/A) as he tried to prevent alcoholic drinks from going sour. The sour taste that Pasteur was trying to prevent was created by the harmful bacterias which accumulated over an extended period of time, making it unpleasant and unsafe to drink. With the invention of Pasteurization, people no longer have to worry if there are harmful bacteria in their food and drinks. People are now able to keep opened liquids for much longer, this is not only a personal convenience, but it saves money as well and it decreases in the overall waste of products. The risk of a person obtaining an unidentified microorganism from their glass of wine and falling sick because it is almost nonexistent in the modern day. Because of Pasteur, we have this luxury and this advancement in our society today that many people take for granted, which only a couple of centuries ago was normal.
There have been a countless number of things named in honor of Louis Pasteur. Everything from schools and universities, to streets, buildings and parks, all to pay homage to Pasteur, his work and of his remarkable and revolutionary achievements made during his lifetime. One of which is the Pasteur Institute for science and health located in Paris, France, which now houses Pasteur’s remains. Today, Institut Pasteur states that it “…is a private, non-profit foundation. Its mission is to help prevent and treat diseases, mainly those of infectious origin, through research, teaching, and public health initiatives.” Organizations such as these are crucial to the very basis of all human civilization, they help our societies discover, learn, and teach these new discoveries to the new generations for a better future for our prosperity to better develop and survive. Without Pasteur, many institutions like these would not exist, wiping out immense quantities of research and advancement for the human race, preventing our perpetual evolvement.
Pasteur said:
“Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity… In the field of observation, chance favors only the prepared mind… There are no such things as applied sciences, only applications of science.”
(Pasteur, N/A)
Pasteur’s upbringing, schooling, and his ideologies all helped to shape the man he became; who made revolutionary discoveries in vaccinations as well as created vaccines of his own to treat the human race, as well as animals, of terrible viruses. Pasteur discovered innovative ways to keep food and drink from spoiling, transforming the food industry and the way we prepare and store these as well. Through pasteurization, a technique used to this day, Pasteur found ways to keep people safe from the harmful microbes that typically grow throughout food supplies. The breakthrough idea of sterilization to kill deadly bacteria and prevent its growth and spread in humans decreased death rates and expanded the life expectancy rate.
Without Louis Pasteur, these advancements in science and medicine may have never been made, prolonging the issue of sterilization and microbial germs, which contributed to a significant portion of deaths during Pasteur’s time in the 19th century. Pasteur’s discoveries led us into our modern day techniques, not only for treating the wounded in and out of hospitals but for the current standards of sanitation and cleanliness, keeping sickness and disease under control and less of a concern through the spread of unsanitary means. His work influenced many other great minds alike and pioneered an entirely new field of work. Pasteur completely revolutionized the way we saw the world we live in today, which has permanently impacted and enhanced the quality of our societies and our lives, paving the way for future advancements and scientific progress.
References
Louis Pasteur. (2016) In Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/ biography/Louis-Pasteur/Research-career
Germ Theory. (2016). In Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/ topic/germ-theory
Louis Pasteur Biography. (N/A). In Biography. Retrieved from http://www.biography.com/ people/Louis-Pasteur-9434402#personal-life
About Us. (N/A). In Institut Pasteur. Retrieved from http://www.pasteur.fr/en/institut-pasteur/ about-us
Louis Pasteur. (N/A). In EdQuest. Retrieved from http://www.edquest.ca/component/content/ article/237
