Alexander Fleming – Biography of Alexander Fleming

Alexander Fleming was a famous Scottish scientist, discoverer of the protein lysozyme and the antibiotic penicillin, which he obtained after investigating the properties of the fungus Penicillium chrysogenum.

This famous scientist was born into a Scottish peasant family. Son of Hugh fleming, who passed away when Alexander he was only seven years old.

While it is known that the education of Alexander It was quite rudimentary, the scientist began to feel full love for detailed observation and simple demeanor. Once he was 13 years old, he moved with one of his stepbrothers to London, where he finished his education thanks to two intensive courses held at the “Polytechnic Institute”From Regent Street.

In 1900 he enlisted in the Scottish Army in order to fight in the Boer War, although the battle ended days before his ship sailed.
Despite his bad experience, his fondness for military life kept him enlisted in his regiment, intervening in the First World War as an officer of the Royal Army Medical Corps.

In 1901 he obtained a scholarship to work in the St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School Paddington, where he was all his life. Five years after joining, Fleming started working for the bacteriologist’s team Sir Almroth Wright, with whom he was a partner for more than 40 years.

In 1908 he finished his career, obtaining the Gold medal of the University of London.

Fleming He dedicated his professional life entirely to the investigation of the defenses of the human body, and tried to fight different bacterial infections.

In 1922, he discovered the lysozyme enzyme, using nasal discharge as the main test, since it had the ability to dissolve certain types of bacteria. He assured that this ability depended directly on an enzyme called lysozyme, present in many of the body’s tissues.

In September 1928, Alexander Fleming discovered the penicillin, currently being considered one of the most important discoveries of modern therapeutics.

As is known, during a doctor’s study of mutations in certain staphylococcal colonies, he found interesting the fact that one of the cultures had been accidentally contaminated by a fungus identified as the Penicillium notatum.
After carefully observing the behavior of the culture, he verified that the staphylococci that were located in the initial zone of contamination had become transparent due to the effect of an antibacterial substance secreted by the fungus.
At that time, he found that a pure culture sample of the fungus acquired a high level of antibacterial activity and, at the same time, was harmless to the animal body.

Despite the tests administered by the scientist, it took about fifteen years for penicillin, from its discovery, to become the universally used therapeutic agent that it became some time later.

In the year 1942, Fleming was elected member of the “Royal Society”And received the title of Sir. Three years later, he won the Nobel Prize together with his colleagues Florey Y Chain.

After suffering a coronary thrombosis, Alexander Fleming He died in London on March 11, 1955.