Erlich Paul is a world-famous German scientist and doctor who received the Nobel Prize in 1908 for his work in the field of immunology. In combination, he was a chemist and bacteriologist. He became the founder of chemotherapy.
Paul Ehrlich: biography
The boy was born on March 14, 1854 in the city of Strzelen in a family of six people: parents and four children. In addition, he was the youngest child and only boy. Paul's father was a wealthy man, as he was engaged in a distillery and had an inn. All children were brought up in strict conditions in compliance with Jewish traditions. Already at an early age, the boy was carried away by natural science, which served as a modest beginning for his great achievements.
The famous Carl Weigert (cousin of his mother) was able to contribute to the development of medical and scientific interests with young Paul. The boy studied at the Breslav gymnasium, after which he continued his studies at medical schools. Having received his education, Erlich Paul got a job in a Berlin clinic.
The beginning of the path to science
The young scientist conducted his first research on blood cells, staining them with various colors and methods. As a result of his experiments, he discovered various forms of white blood cells, showed the importance of bone marrow for blood formation, and was also able to find mast cells in connective tissue.
Thanks to staining, Paul Erlich, whose photo you can see in this article, was able to develop a special method for the recognition of tuberculous bacteria, which significantly influenced the process of diagnosing this disease in patients.
Scientific insight
Staining the cells, the young scientist witnessed the most ambitious medical discoveries that influenced his future. Robert Koch and Louis Pasteur are scientists, on the basis of whose works Erlich Paul put forward his theory of the fight against microbes. While still an inexperienced student, the young man read a book about lead poisoning, which could not leave the boy’s consciousness alone. In this work, it was said that, getting into the body, lead accumulates in certain organs. In addition, it is very easy to prove chemically.
Thus, the young scientist came to the conclusion that we need to look for such substances that will attach to harmful bacteria and bind them. This will help stop the entry of harmful substances into the human body. It is hard to believe, but the scientist came to this conclusion with a simple paint, which he used purely out of curiosity. He realized that if the paint is able to adhere to the fabric and thus stain it, so it can attach to harmful bacteria and kill them.
Theory of the "magic bullet"
In 1878, Erlich Paul became the head physician of a Berlin hospital. I was able to develop my own methods of histological studies. First, he stained bacteria on glass, and then proceeded to the tissues of animals that had been killed by contagious diseases. And once he injected blue paint into the blood of a living rabbit. During such an experiment, the scientist was surprised by the incredible consequences.
Only the brain and nerves turned blue. All other fabrics have not changed their color. Erlich came to the conclusion: if there is paint that can stain a certain type of tissue, then there is a substance that can kill a certain type of harmful microorganism. Thanks to such observations, the theory of the “magic bullet” emerged, which implies the ingress of a substance into the infected body that can very quickly kill all harmful inhabitants.
"Sleeping sickness
Erlich Paul, whose contribution to microbiology is invaluable, in 1906 became director of the Institute of Experimental Serotherapy. At this time, he was interested in "sleeping" disease, which killed at that time a large number of Africans. Scientists invented the miraculous medicine "Atoxil", which destroyed trypanosomes, but at the same time the person lost his sight. Erlich Paul found that this tool contains arsenic, which is a real poison.
The main task of the scientist was the invention of such a tool that would kill all trypanosomes, but did not have a detrimental effect on humans. Hundreds of substances were tested, but these microorganisms developed immunity, so the drugs did not fit. However, despite so many disappointments, Paul managed to create a cure for the "sleeping" disease.
Sexually transmitted diseases
Such diseases have troubled humanity for a very long time. In the era of bacteriology, many scientists began to search for pathogens of various diseases, and at that time they were able to find three. First, the gonorrhea bacillus was found, then a soft chancre and finally syphilis, the causative agent of which is a pale spirochete.
Syphilis Cure
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, intravenous injections were just beginning to appear. In hospitals, they were almost never used. But that all changed after Erlich Paul proposed a medicine that could cure syphilis. There were many attempts to create it, the result was amazing. By the way, using chemicals in his scientific experiments, the scientist created a new direction in medicine.
The academician proposed treating syphilis with substances that, when oxidized, begin to form active arsenic compounds. But, unfortunately, in the course of many tests, it was not possible to completely eliminate its destructive harm.
Unexpected life turn
Paul Ehrlich, for whom microbiology was a vocation, became an assistant professor in 1887, and a university professor in 1890. He also worked at the Robert Koch Institute. In 1888, during one of the laboratory experiments, he was infected with tuberculosis. Taking his wife and both daughters, he went to Egypt for treatment. But instead of curing one disease, he became ill with diabetes. When his health improved, the family returned to Berlin.
Since 1891, Erlich Paul, whose work was the starting point for most scientists, devoted a lot of time to the selection of chemicals necessary for the treatment of diseases caused by parasites from the outside. His first achievement was a drug based on methylene blue, which was intended to treat four-day malaria. After that, he began to use many other dyes. During such work, he was the first to notice the addiction of microorganisms to the introduced drugs. Immunological reactions for recovery have been established.
Nobel Prize
The scientist was the first to put forward the theory of immunity - the body’s ability to protect itself from genetically alien bodies. He created the theory of side chains, which plays a very important role in the development of the science of immunology. For this work, a German scientist together with Mechnikov received the Nobel Prize in 1908.
Erlich Paul: contribution to science
In 1901, a physician and scientist with great experience began to deal with the treatment of malignant tumors. He developed a special series of experiments, during which he inoculated tumors with animals, and for the first time was able to prove that animals have immune reactions that form after the disappearance of a vaccinated tumor.
The scientist’s most important discovery was the discovery of mast cells unknown to science, which play an important role in the formation of immunity. Also, Paul was able to prove that every cell of a living organism that enters into immune reactions has special receptors that can recognize foreign agents. It was for such discoveries that Erlich Paul received the Nobel Prize.
Erlich proved himself in the field of chemistry, as he described reactions of great importance in medicine. For this he received the Liebig medal.
He was a member of seventy scientific world communities and academies. To date, in his honor are named: the Institute of immunological drugs, as well as streets, hospitals, educational institutions, scientific communities and foundations, a prize for scientific discoveries. He was also named after a crater on the moon.
In 1909, Nicholas II awarded the academician the Order of St. Anne, and also awarded the title of Actual Privy Councilor. Erlich resigned because he could not renounce the Jewish faith.
He was married to a woman who provided the household and financial aspects of his life. Paul was completely immersed in science. I did not pay attention to anything else. I could write in any place, starting with the floor and walls and ending with the hands of the interlocutors.
The scientist died on August 20, 1915 from an apoplexy attack in Bad Homburg. Buried in a Jewish cemetery. In 1933, the Nazis destroyed the monument, but it was restored again.