-
A French medical student names Ernest Duchesne first noticed penicillin.
-
In 1928, Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin. He noticed that Staphylococcus had been contaminated by a mold, and the bacteria was being dissolved. Alexander was curious so he grew the mold and it produced a substance that killed the bacteria. This substance was penicillin.
-
Dr. Fleming publishes his results of the investigation on penicillin. He adds to that discovery by saying the product might have therapeutic value if it could be produced in quantity.
-
Dr. Howard Florey began intensive research on penicillin. He demonstrated penicillin's ability to kill infectious bacteria. However, the war caused the scientists not to be able to produce the medicines, so he went to the United States for help.
-
Andrew Moyer and Dr. Heatley began to increase the yields of penicillin by 10 times. Then in 1943, the clinical trials showed that penicillin was the most effective antibacterial agent.
-
Four years after drug companies began to mass produce penicillin a microbes began showing that it could resist it. This bug was called Staphylococcus aureus. It was mostly harmless, unless it overgrew and became a toxin.
-
The scientist that helped invent and create penicillin were rewarded with a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. This award went to Sir Alexander Fleming, Howard Florey, and Ernst Chain.
