One of the greatest men ever to have lived..........a reward richly befitting his contribution to mankind.

One of the greatest men ever to have lived in the world was Dr Alexander Flemming. He was a dedicated English doctor who was very keen to do his best to cure his patients. However, there were no bacteria-fighting drugs at that time and many of his patients died of blood-poisoning. Therefore, Dr Flemming tried to discover a bacteria-fighting drug through experiments in his laboratory.

He cultivated harmful germs on dishes of jelly. Surprisingly, he discovered that the harmful germs were killed by the mould in the jelly. The organisms in the mould produced chemical substances which killed the harmful germs. This was a fantastic discovery in 1928 - a mould that could kill harmful germs! As a result, Dr Flemming wanted to find the chemical substance made by the mould.

Finally, he found the substance which was three times more effective than carbolic acid, the disinfectant for killing germs then. The new drug became known as penicillin, after the name of the mould. Dr Flemming's next challenge was to produce a large amount of this antibody for use on his patients.

He continued with his experiments. With the outbreak of the Second World War, his drug was very much in demand. Subsequently, his wonder drug was produced in great amounts. The persons responsible were Professor Sir Howard Florey who introduced its use for healing patients, and Dr E. Chain who studied it in detail.

With the discovery of penicillin by Dr Flemming, fewer people died from bacteria infection. His drug had alleviated the sufferings of mankind and indeed saved the lives of millions. Hailed as one of the world's greatest contributors to medical science, he had made it possible not only to treat diseases but to prevent them too. His drug can be applied to animals as well. Therefore, if you had been treated for diseases such as pneumonia, influenza and gum infection by antibiotics, you have Dr Flemming to thank for.

In recognition of his brilliant discovery, Dr Flemming was knighted, a reward richly befitting his contribution to mankind.

Summary: Before the discovery of penicillin, many patients died of blood-poisoning. In 1928 Dr Flemming discovered that harmful germs were being destroyed by a chemical substance produced by a mould growing in dishes of jelly. Dr Flemming decided to isolate this chemical substance. He finally discovered this substance which was thrice as effective as carbolic acid, a disinfectant used then. This new drug was called penicillin. With the outbreak of the Second World War, the demand for penicillin rose and it was produced in large quantities. With the discovery of penicillin, many lives were saved and many diseases prevented. For his discovery, Dr Flemming was knighted.