Bacteriologists

Alexander Fleming was a Scottish microbiologist and physician. He is credited with discovering penicillin, the world's first effective antibiotic substance; a discovery that changed the course of history. He also discovered lysozyme, an antimicrobial enzyme which forms part of the innate immune system. In 1999, Fleming was named in Time magazine's 100 Most Important People of the 20th century list.

Robert Koch was a German microbiologist and physician. One of the prominent co-founders of modern bacteriology, Koch is credited with creating and improving laboratory techniques and technologies in the field of microbiology. He is also credited with making important discoveries in public health. In 1905, Robert Koch won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his research on tuberculosis.

Hans Christian Gram was a Danish bacteriologist best remembered for developing a technique called Gram stain, which is still used today to classify bacteria. He achieved international recognition after developing the Gram stain technique. Hans Christian Gram also served as a professor at the University of Copenhagen.

A pioneer of molecular biology, Oswald Avery revolutionized science with his research on the chemical processes involved in immunology. The Canadian-American bacteriologist initially aspired to be a musician. He later proved that DNA was the basis of heredity. Though nominated for the Nobel Prize multiple times, he never won it.

Alexandre Yersin was a physician and bacteriologist. He is credited with co-discovering Yersinia pestis, the bacillus that causes the bubonic plague. Also an agriculturist, Yersin pioneered the cultivation of rubber trees. He is revered by the Vietnamese people because of his association with Hanoi Medical University; a private university in Da Lat is named in his honor.

Charles Scott Sherrington was an English histologist, neurophysiologist, pathologist, and bacteriologist. In 1932, Sherrington and Edgar Douglas Adrian were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries of the functions of neurons. Charles Scott Sherrington's exposition of synaptic communication between neurons helped understand the central nervous system. He was also the recipient of the prestigious Royal Medal.

Nobel Prize-winning biologist Alfred Day Hershey is best remembered for his research on bacteriophages, or viruses that infect bacteria. He was associated with the Washington University throughout most of his life. He is also known for his blender experiment, which he conducted with his work partner Martha Chase.

Nobel Prize-winning German pathologist and bacteriologist Gerhard Domagk is best remembered for his pathbreaking discovery of Prontosil, the first sulfonamide antibiotic. The Nazis, however, didn’t allow him to accept the Nobel Prize immediately and detained him briefly instead. He had also served as a soldier in World War I.

Ferdinand Cohn was a German biologist who is credited with co-founding microbiology and modern bacteriology. Apart from publishing more than 150 research reports, Cohn also made significant contributions to the field of botany. He was also the first person to classify algae as plants. Ferdinand Cohn received the prestigious Leeuwenhoek Medal in 1885.

Albert Calmette was a French bacteriologist, physician, and immunologist. He is credited with discovering the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin. He is also credited with inveting the first antivenom for snake bites. Albert Calmette also helped develop amylolysis, which was used extensively in industrial brewing.

Nobel Prize-winning Dutch physician and pathologist Christiaan Eijkman was the first to prove that poor diet is the cause of the disease beriberi, which in turn led to the discovery of vitamins. While he initially worked in the Dutch East Indies, he later collaborated with Robert Koch in his Berlin laboratory.

Carlos Chagas was a Brazilian sanitary physician and bacteriologist. Also a clinician and researcher, he discovered Chagas disease, also called American trypanosomiasis, in 1909. He was working at the Oswaldo Cruz Institute in Rio de Janeiro at that time. He was also the first to discover the parasitic fungal genus Pneumocystis. He founded a nursing school as well. 

Victor Babeș was a Romanian bacteriologist, physician, academician, and professor. Widely regarded as the co-founder of modern microbiology, Babeș is credited with authoring one of the world's first treatises of bacteriology, Bacteria and their role in pathological anatomy and histology of infectious diseases. Victor Babeș also made important contributions to the study of leprosy, rabies, tuberculosis, and diphtheria.

Shiga Kiyoshi was a Japanese bacteriologist and physician. He is credited for many scientific discoveries, including the discovery of the Shigella dysenteriae microorganism. He also conducted research on diseases such as trypanosomiasis and tuberculosis. Kiyoshi Shiga is also credited with making numerous advancements in immunology and bacteriology.

Johannes Fibiger was a Danish physician who also worked at the University of Copenhagen as a professor of anatomical pathology. He is best remembered for winning the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1926. He won the prize for discovering a worm, which he named Spiroptera carcinoma. The roundworm was later correctly named Gongylonema neoplasticum.

Pierre Paul Emile Roux was a French bacteriologist, physician, and immunologist. A close collaborator of Louis Pasteur, Roux was responsible for the Pasteur Institute's production of the famous anti-diphtheria serum. Credited with founding the field of immunology, Pierre Paul Emile Roux also investigated chicken-cholera, cholera, tuberculosis, and rabies. He was honored with the prestigious Copley Medal in 1917.

Born to a German army surgeon, bacteriologist Friedrich Loeffler followed in his father’s footsteps and served as an army doctor for a while before becoming an academic. He later co-discovered the Klebs-Löffler bacillus, the organism that causes diphtheria, and developed a serum to detect it, apart from founding a microbiology-oriented journal.

Thomas Milton Rivers was an American virologist and bacteriologist. Referred to as the father of modern virology, Rivers is best remembered for his association with the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research; his work during the 1930s and 1940s helped the institute become a leader in viral research. In 1958, Rivers was made an inductee of the Polio Hall of Fame. 

August von Wassermann was a German hygienist and bacteriologist. He is best remembered for developing a complement fixation test that allowed for early detection of syphilis in 1906. The test helped prevent the transmission of the disease and played a major role in the diagnosis of syphilis. In 1921, August von Wassermann became the first winner of the Aronson Prize. 

Watson Cheyne was a Scottish bacteriologist and surgeon best remembered for pioneering the implementation of antiseptic surgical methods in the UK. Cheyne is also known for his association with King's College Hospital, where he served as a surgeon from 1880 to 1917. From 1900 to 1901, he served as a consulting surgeon during the Boer War in South Africa. 

Best remembered for his fight against American trypanosomiasis, Salvador Mazza had to face governmental apathy as well as active resistance from powerful quarters while carrying on his research. Yet, he continued with his mission, setting up his first laboratory in a railway car in Argentina’s underdeveloped north, eventually forcing the South American medical community to accept the validity of trypanosomiasis.