Chemistry vs. bacteria, # 22. ‘America First’
By the end of 1941, Heatley starts working at Merck. He quite regularly exchanges letters with Florey. And Florey receives an enormous box from the United States. He is sure that it will contain the long-awaited kilo of penicillin. But the amount appears to be just 5 grams. That will be all from the US.
Chemistry vs. bacteria, # 19. The battle of Britain
In April and May 1940, the Oxford team tests its brown powder on cats, rabbits, rats, mice and other animals. The animals stay healthy. They also discover that injection is the best way of administering the drug. If it is swallowed, the functionality disappears in the stomach. But they also observe that the medicine’s activity
Chemistry vs. bacteria, # 18. Penicillin beats the sulfas!
Four major questions dominated the Oxford research on penicillin. We review them in good order. 1. How do we grow as much mould as possible, while maximizing penicillin production? 2. Which harmful bacteria will be attacked by penicillin? 3. Are there any harmful effects of penicillin on the body? 4. What is the chemical structure
Chemistry vs. bacteria, # 17. The Oxford team
Eventually, a team of Oxford University succeeds in the production and purification of penicillin. But a strange team it is; it never grows into some kind of unity. It consists of Ernst Chain, Howard Florey, Norman Heatley, Margaret Jennings and Edward Abraham. Their research is their only point in common. Several books have described in
Chemistry vs. bacteria, # 11. Pride comes before a fall
Both the UK and the US greet M&B 693 or sulfapyridine with much enthusiasm. In the war years, this message about the sulfas is a much-needed piece of good news. Project ‘100 years of antibiotics’ Episode 9. In the crossfire Episode 10. International recognition Episode 11. Pride comes before a fall Episode 12. Lessons learned
Chemistry vs. bacteria, episode 6. Gerhard Domagk and Prontosil, the first sulfa drug
The success of Salvarsan leads Paul Ehrlich to believe that he will quickly be able to eliminate many other pathogens. In 1914, he addresses the 7th International Medical Congress in London. In paraphrase he says: ‘All countries in the world are represented here, witnessing that all borders between nations have been eliminated in scientific cooperation.’
Antibiotics resistance, and how to overcome it
All over the world, antibiotics resistance increases. Overdose prescriptions are an important cause. And also the natural phenomenon of increasing resistance as the same medicine is being used for years at a stretch. The problem is severe in humane antibiotics use. And even worse in livestock antibiotics use. Lux Research has investigated the alternatives. And
The solutions are here!
The solutions are here!, talking about major global problems. Solutions that exist already but are not generally applied. Or that are under severe and undeserved attack and therefore receive insufficient support. We have in mind: renewable energy and energy storage, food for 10 billion people, cleaning up all plastic waste and preventing new waste to
