(Louis) Pasteur

Louis Pasteur (1822-1895)

he was a french chemist and microbiologist. He is classified as a founder of the modern bacteriology. He has examined the germ of hydrophobia and anthrax. After this discovery, he invented active immunisations against hydrophobia, anthrax, red murrain and chicken cholera. The term "pasteurization" is caused by Louis Pasteur. This means the method of carefully heating liquids up to 60 or 80 degrees with the effect that they become longer lasting.

Pasteur was born on the 27th of December 1822 in Dole, France. He was not never a doctor but he is considered as the founder of the modern medicine, the development for the biology and biological chemistry,microbiology and the immunbiology. Louis Pasteur was chemicist and bacteriologist. Additionally, he was the precursor of the "antisepsis" which means 'against decomposition' and includes the disinfection. With the help of these discoveries, Pasteur taught the doctors.

Louis Pasteur was the son of a tanner who owes his apprenticeship to friends of his family. After passing his school days at the Collège Royale in Bescancon, he went to Paris in 1842. One year later still in Paris, he studied natural sciences at the École Normale Superieure until 1846. Again one zear later, Pasteur enrolled in physics and in chemistry as well. In 1849, he reached the professorship for chemistry at the universitz in Strassbourg that one which is called after him, now. From 1888 until his death and after some lectureships in Sorbonne and Lille at the universitz which was established for him.

Louis Pasteur is espaciallz interested in the chemical difference between fermentation and decomposition. Conducted by this interest, he began about 1850 to be concerned with the fermentation which is an important part of the tannery that is safeguarding the future of his family -but this process is also very importent in professions like in a bakery, in the food sector and the brewing business.

The today's common refinement (herbal/) basic commodities or even the extraction of antibiotics through the process of the fermentation was impossible to think about in the time of Pasteur. The perception of that time said that death enzymes produce fermentation and decomposition in organic matter. In Pasteur's work 1857 it became clear that fermentation a reaction is made by miniscule cells as a result of their existence. In 1863 Pasteur reached the knowledge after some extensive experiments concerning fermentation and decay that small single-celled organism lead this process by splitting themselves ("out off themselves") in absence of oxygen. By adding air follows the decay and decomposition, especially when he tried this with proteins. Pasteur called his recovery, the microorganisms that were looking small, spherical, like screws or skewer "fission fungi". We all know them today under the term "bacterials" or "microbes".

Pasteur needed years in experimenting until he discovered that the small organism of the fermentation and decomposation are not refractory. Following, one can heat liquids to make them germ- free and as a concequence to prevent the process of the fermentation or the decomposition without losing or changing important and necessary ingredients. In Pasteur's studies about "The diseases of the wine" in the year 1863, Pasteur shows that the omnipresent "vinegar mushroom"generates the acid and this means that he is mainly important in producing wine. In 1876 hepublished another book consisting of some sudies about "The Diseases of beer".

Pasteur showed that the degradation of wines could be prevented by heating the closed bottle of wine on 69- 75 degrees. This is how he invented or discovered the "pasteurizing". A lot of products we eat or drink every day, for example milk, beer, soft drinks and juices are heat- treated which means pasteurized.

In the course of his researches Pasteur discovered that also some diseases are evoked by some bacterials. This leads him in 1870 to the discovery of the pathogens of the (domestic) sillkmoth- disease ("Pebrine" and "Flacherie"). Wih this knowledge were Pasteur able to help and rescue the existence of the threatened silkindustry in Lyon. The highest significance were his study about the anthrax pathogen that he discovered in 1877. Louis Pasteur opened the eras of the "active immunization" with the detection against hydrophobia.

Even in his lifetime, Pasteur was a national hero and the carrier of many domestic and foreign honors. The french state thanked Pasteur with a life annuity and an institute which is called "Institute Pasteur" to honor him. There, he worked as the first director until his death. The honorary doctorate diploma from the Bonn medicine faculty was regretted by him because of the Franco- German War. Since his heartattack in 1868, Pasteur had been partially unlaterally paralyzed and the afflictions became even more worse with the years passing by. On his seventies birthday he got awarded and assumed the honor with tears in his eyes but he was not anymore able to address a few words of thanks.