Alexander Fleming

Sir Alexander Fleming ( born August 6, 1881 in Darvel, East Ayrshire, † March 11, 1955 in London) was a Scottish bacteriologist. He received in 1945 as one of the discoverers of the antibiotic penicillin the Nobel Prize. Furthermore, he discovered the lysozyme, an enzyme that exhibits strong anti-bacterial properties and is found in various body secretions such as tears, and saliva.

Life

Alexander Fleming in 1881 on the farm Lochfield (municipality Darvel ) born. He studied medicine from 1901 at St Mary 's Hospital Medical School in Paddington. In 1906 he completed his studies, but remained at the institute. From 1921 he was deputy director and in 1946 director of the Institute, which was renamed Wright -Fleming Institute in 1948. From 1928 to 1948 he held the Chair of Bacteriology at the University of London.

In his younger years, Fleming employed with car vaccines. In 1921 he isolated the enzyme lysozyme, which is found in the protein of chicken egg and in numerous human body secretions and is able to destroy bacteria. He happened to notice on 28 September in 1928 in the laboratory in one of his staphylococcal cultures into molds of the genus Penicillium guessed who had a germicidal effect. Further investigation later led to the antibiotic penicillin.

For his discovery Fleming has been honored. In 1944 he was knighted, and in 1945 he got together with Howard Walter Florey and Ernst Boris Chain, who had continued his investigations, "for the discovery of penicillin and its curative effect in various infectious diseases " the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. Moreover, he was honorary doctorate of twelve American and European universities, commander of the French Legion of Honor and honorary director of the University of Edinburgh.

Fleming died on March 11, 1955 in London of a heart attack and was buried in London's Saint Paul's Cathedral.

After him the asteroid ( 91006 ) Fleming was named in 2007.

In 2013 in Stuttgart was the newly founded "Vocational School of Health and Care " named after him.

Nobel Prize of Alexander Fleming.

Freemasonry

Fleming was a Mason, from 1925 several times Master of the Chair of the Santa Maria Masonic number 2692 and from 1936, the Misericordia Lodge No.. 3286. 1942 he became First United Schaffner of the United Grand Lodge of England and in 1948 the United overseers. He was also a member of the London Scottish Rifles Lodge No.. 2319 and reached the 30th degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.