Because tuberculosis spreads quietly and unconsciously, there is often more than one patient in the same family. Therefore, people once thought it was just a genetic disease. Of course, some people think it is probably an infectious disease. Because the cause has not been found, it is not only impossible to confirm this, but also impossible to give patients effective treatment.
On the road to conquer tuberculosis, German bacteriologist Koch took an important first step.
1882, Koch discovered the extremely harmful Mycobacterium tuberculosis for the first time by using new technologies such as animal rubber plate culture medium and pigment staining. He also extracted tuberculin from the culture solution of mycobacterium tuberculosis, which can be used to check whether a person is infected with tuberculosis.
The second step was completed by German medical scientist Behring.
Behring has made outstanding achievements in antitoxin serum therapy, especially in the prevention and treatment of diphtheria and tetanus with serum therapy. For this reason, he won the Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology in 190 1 year, which is the first Nobel Prize awarded in this field. Unfortunately, Belin, who just turned 50, contracted tuberculosis because of overwork. At that time, this disease, like cancer today, was regarded as a terminal disease.
However, Behring did not stay in bed, and he began to study tuberculosis. He wants to use the last moment of his life to conquer this demon that has tortured mankind for thousands of years. The research work of Belin made rapid progress, and the bovine tuberculosis vaccine invented by Belin was effective and adopted by many countries. Unfortunately, just at the critical moment in the study of tuberculosis, on March 3 19 17, Belin died of tuberculosis. The whole world feels sorrow and regret for the loss of this great scholar.
Shortly after Belin's death, mankind mastered the prevention method of tuberculosis, which is considered as the third milestone in conquering tuberculosis.
After Koch discovered the bacteria of tuberculosis, he once suggested that if tuberculosis patients spit the sputum rich in bacteria on the ground at will, the bacteria can fly all over the sky with the dust after the sputum is dried. If this bacteria is inhaled into the lungs by pedestrians, it will get sick, so I hope everyone will not spit everywhere.
At the beginning of the 20th century, two French scientists, Calmer and Yun Jie, after 230 subcultures in13 * *, the original virulent strain of bovine tuberculosis became avirulent. Inoculating this non-toxic strain into cattle, horses, sheep and mice, they are not infected with tuberculosis, but produce strong immunity to deal with the invasion of tuberculosis.
192 1 year, Professor wilmer of Paris University inoculated a child with this nontoxic strain for the first time. After 6 months' observation, it is proved that the child is healthy and sound. 1924, he inoculated 3 17 children in the same way, which also proved harmless to human body. So this inoculation method was gradually popularized, and so far, it is still the simplest and most effective method to prevent tuberculosis. Our readers may have been vaccinated with this vaccine called BCG. People use this name to commemorate the great contributions of Calmer and Yun Jie.