Sir Alexander Fleming Essay Example
Sir Alexander Fleming Essay Example

Sir Alexander Fleming Essay Example

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  • Pages: 3 (626 words)
  • Published: December 12, 2018
  • Type: Autobiography
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Sir Alexander Fleming was born in Lochfield near Darvel in Ayrshire, Scotland on August 6th, 1881. He attended Louden Moor School, Darvel School, and Kilmarnock Academy before relocating to London to pursue studies at the Polytechnic. Following four years of employment in a shipping office, he joined St. Mary's Medical School at London University where he graduated with honors in 1906. Subsequently, he commenced research at St.

Mary obtained her M.B., B.S. degree (London) with a Gold Medal in 1908 while working under Sir Almroth Wright, who was a pioneer in vaccine therapy. Following her graduation, she became a lecturer at St. Mary's until 1914. During World War I, Mary served as a captain in the Army Medical Corps and received recognition through dispatches. In 1918, she returned to St. Mary's.

Professor Fleming joined the School in 1928 and became Emeritus P

...

rofessor of Bacteriology at the University of London in 1948. In 1944, he received a knighthood and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1943. Despite his military service, Fleming continued his research on the natural bacterial action of blood and antiseptics. Upon his discharge, he focused on finding antibacterial substances that were safe for animal tissues. In 1921, he made a significant discovery of Lysozyme, which is a bacteriolytic substance found in tissues and secretions. During this time period, he also developed techniques for sensitivity titrations and assays to measure penicillin levels in human blood and other bodily fluids.

In 1928, Sir Alexander Fleming discovered the accidental growth of mould on a staphylococcus culture plate while working on influenza virus. The mould formed a bacteria-free circle, prompting him to conduct additional experiments

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These experiments showed that even when diluted 800 times, this mould culture could still inhibit the growth of staphylococci. Sir Alexander named this active substance penicillin and wrote multiple papers on bacteriology, immunology, and chemotherapy. His work included original descriptions of lysozyme and penicillin.

Fleming, who became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons (England) in 1909 and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (London) in 1944, has received numerous awards. Some notable ones include being appointed as Hunterian Professor in 1919, Arris and Gale Lecturer in 1929, and receiving the Honorary Gold Medal from the Royal College of Surgeons in 1946. He was also awarded the Williams Julius Mickle Fellowship from the University of London in 1942, Charles Mickle Fellowship from the University of Toronto in 1944, John Scott Medal from City Guild of Philadelphia in 1944, Cameron Prize from the University of Edinburgh in 1945, Moxon Medal from the Royal College of Physicians in 1945, Cutter Lecturer at Harvard University in 1945, Albert Gold Medal from the Royal Society of Arts in 1946, Gold Medal from the Royal Society of Medicine in 1947, Medal for Merit by U.S.A. government in 1947, and finally received Grand Cross of Alphonse X the Wise award from Spain

. In addition to his achievements and accolades within medical and scientific circles (

He served as President for General Microbiology society

, he was elected as a Member

of Pontifical Academy of Science

) Fleming is considered an Honorary Memberof almost all medical and scientific societies worldwide.

From 1951 to 1954, he was the Rector of Edinburgh University. He received recognition as a Freeman from several boroughs and cities, and

was appointed as the Honorary Chief Doy-gei-tau of the Kiowa tribe. Additionally, he was granted honorary doctorate degrees from almost thirty European and American Universities. In 1915, he wed Sarah Marion McElroy of Killala, Ireland. Regrettably, she died in 1949. Their son currently works as a general medical practitioner.

In 1953, Fleming wedded Dr. Amalia Koutsouri-Voureka, a Greek coworker at St. Mary's Hospital. Before that, he spent 14 years from 1900 to 1914 serving in the Territorial Army and being a private in the London Scottish Regiment.

Dr Fleming died on March 11, 1955 and was buried at St. Paul's Cathedral.

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