MCB Historical Figures Exam 1

1665— Robert Hooke

Observed “cells” in cork with a microscope; helped form cell theory.

1673–1723 – Antonie van Leeuwenhoek

First to see live microbes, which he called “animalcules,” using handcrafted microscopes.

1668 – Francesco Redi

 Meat experiment showed maggots only appear when flies have access, challenging spontaneous generation.

 1745 – John Needham

Boiled broth but left flasks open; microbes grew, mistakenly supporting spontaneous generation

1765 – Lazzaro Spallanzani

Boiled broth and sealed flasks; no microbial growth, supporting biogenesis.

1861 – Louis Pasteur

 Famous swan-neck flask experiment disproved spontaneous generation; also pioneered fermentation studies and pasteurization.

1860s – Joseph Lister

Applied germ theory to medicine; introduced aseptic surgery using carbolic acid, reducing infections.

1876 – Robert Koch

Proved Bacillus anthracis causes anthrax; created Koch’s postulates, establishing how to link microbes to disease.

1928 – Alexander Fleming

Discovered penicillin, the first true antibiotic, from Penicillium mold.

1950s – Jonas Salk & Albert Sabin

 Developed polio vaccines (Salk = killed/inactivated; Sabin = oral live-attenuated).

1966 – Lynn Margulis

Proposed the endosymbiotic theory: mitochondria and chloroplasts originated from engulfed prokaryotic cells.

1983 – Kary Mullis

Invented polymerase chain reaction (PCR), enabling rapid DNA amplification.

1990 – Carl Woese

 Developed the 3-domain classification (Bacteria, Archaea, Eukarya) using rRNA sequencing.

1995 – Craig Venter

Sequenced the first complete bacterial genome (Haemophilus influenzae).

 2006 – Harald zur Hausen

 Discovered HPV causes cervical cancer; led to development of the HPV vaccine.