The study of infectious disease - History

The study of infectious disease

History

German postage stamps depicting four antique microscopes. Advancements in microscopy were essential to the early study of infectious diseases.Abū Alī ibn Sīnā (Avicenna) discovered the contagious nature of infectious diseases in the early 11th century. He introduced quarantine as a means of limiting the spread of contagious and infectious diseases in The Canon of Medicine, circa 1020.[20] He also stated that bodily secretion is contaminated by foul foreign earthly bodies before being infected, but he did not view them as primary causes of disease.[21]

When the Black Death bubonic plague reached al-Andalus in the 14th century, Ibn Khatima and Ibn al-Khatib hypothesized that infectious diseases are caused by "contagious entities" which enter the human body.[21] Such ideas became more popular in Europe during the renaissance, particularly through the writing of the Italian monk Girolamo Fracastoro.[22]

Anton van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723) advanced the science of microscopy by being the first to observe microorganisms, allowing for easy visualization of bacteria.

Louis Pasteur proved beyond doubt that certain diseases are caused by infectious agents, and developed a vaccine for rabies.

Robert Koch, provided the study of infectious diseases with a scientific basis known as Koch's postulates.

Edward Jenner, Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin developed effective vaccines for smallpox and polio, which would later result in the eradication and near-eradication of these diseases, respectively.

Alexander Fleming discovered the world's first antibiotic Penicillin.

Gerhard Domagk developed Sulphonamides, the first broad spectrum synthetic antibacterial drugs.