Amazing & Interesting Facts About Louis Pasteur: A Great Benefactor of Humanity
1822-1895
“I was born to a tanner. He was a worker but was always eager to learn. He was my first teacher and it was he who inspired in me the love for work, as a direction for my work, instilled in me the love for my country. May your work also be governed by these two passions.”
——–Louis Pasteur
Where does genius come from? Often, we are contented with attributing it to a unique, exceptional and mysterious resource of mind. On the contrary, in the case of Pasteur, we see clearly that the power of his genius comes from multiple sources, very much in opposition to his intelligence, character and temperament. He was an artist and a dreamer. He would allow himself to be fascinated by mirages of an imagination which always tended to go beyond the horizons of knowledge. He was ambitious and dominating and would be satisfief only with real and complete victories. He was rigorous and demanding towards himself. At the same time he would spare no efforts to be severe and disciplined.
Jacques Monod while speaking on the occasion of the celebration of the 150 birth anniversary of Lois Pasteur in 1973.
“Pasteur has done much more than create the science of microbes : he inaugurated the era of scientific medicine … Pasteur opened medicines to science : he introduced into the medical body the notion of germ – non-microbial – which brought in a permanent revolution. Preserver in all fields other than science, preserver by nature with great respect for order, traditions and institutions, Pasteur – “who was not even a doctor” – was to force open the doors of the sacrosanct temple of medicine, to clear the fog of scholastic learning and destroy the existing idols; doctors where going through scientific training, doctrines ceased to be frozen into dogmas, the prevailing mentalities and attitudes were transformed.
—–Claire Salomon-Bayet
Louis Pasteur is regarded as one of the greatest biologists of all times. Isaac Asimov, the prolific science writer, said : “In biology it is doubtful that any one but Aristotle and Darwin can be mentioned in the same breath with him.”
Pasteur solved the mysteries of rabies, anthrax, chicken cholera, and silkworm diseases and contributed to the development of the first vaccines. Pasteur was responsible for some of the most important theoretical concepts and practical applications of modern science. Although not a physician, Pasteur was undoubtedly the most important medical scientist working in the 19th century. He gave a new meaning to medicine. He was one of the forerunners in the study of microorganisms. He not only explained the causes for contagious diseases but also recommended ways of avoiding them. Pasteur was a founder of the germ theory. He laid the foundations of three distinct sciences- Immunology, microbiology and stereochemistry. It was Pasteur who brought to an end the debate on spontaneous generations which had continued for centuries. He clearly demonstrated that spontaneous generation was not possible. And doing so Pasteur set the stage for modern biology and biochemistrty. Psteur described the scientific basis for fermentation—the process of production of wine, beer and vinegar. He clearly demonstrated that the nature of fermentation was organic (a product of a certain type of living organism) and not inorganic, as proposed and defended by Justus von Liebig. Pasteur developed a vaccine against anthrax, a particularly deadly, highly communicable disease of domestic animals.
The name of Louis Pasteur became a household word for his two inventions: pasteurization process for sterilizing dairy foods and a vaccine for rabies. While these two inventions are hallmarks of his long, rich career but he achieved much more. In public mind the name of Pasteur is associated with rabies to such an extent – that his main discoveries are often forgotten.
Science was the main passion of his life and his whole life was devoted to it. Pasteur said; “Science…it is my life…it has brought me a deepness of pleasure that I have always known yet never realized.” Pasteur was a great hero in his own times and he remains so to this day.
Pasteur was born on 27 December 1822 in Ole in France and grew up in the nearby town of Arbois. His father Jean Pasteur was a tanner without much education. Pasteur was very much influenced by his father. In one of his letters to his father Pasteur wrote: “You (Pasteur’s father) might not remember how important your influence on me was in developing my mind… It was you who helped me decide to study natural sciences—undoubtedly because of your own interest in the subject rather than your conviction regarding my aptitude. Enthusiasm and mother’s presence of mind were all passed on to me by you. If I have always associated the grandeur of our country it is because of the feelings that you inspired in me.”
In his early school days Pasteur was not an outstanding student. The young Pasteur preferred fishing and painting to studies. He showed great talent for drawing. He made a series of portraits of his family members, classmates and neighbours. Several of his portraits are exhibited at the Pasteur Museum. On his portraits Pasteur wrote to his parents: “Some students told me that people in Besancon were talking about a schoolboy who draws his classmates. The fact is, as I already told you, my first portrait was exhibited in the reception area where people come to see students. However, all this is not going to fetch me a seat in Ecole Normale. I would prefer a first place in the college to the ten thousand praises that are loosely showered in general conversations.” Though Pasteur could easily become a superior portrait artist but fortunately for science he did not pursue this career. Pasteur himself became interested in scientific subjects particularly in chemistry. Pasteur’s father was not in favour of his son ending up as an artist. He wanted that his son after completing his education become a professor in the college at Arbois. However, the headmaster the local school recognized Pasteur’s potential and convinced his father to send young Pasteur to Ecole Normale Superiuere in Paris, the most prestigious university founded specifically to train outstanding students, for careers in higher education in science and humanities. On 26 August 1842 Pasteur qualified for admission to the Ecole Normale and among the twenty-two candidates selected Pasteur ranked fifteenth. His physics was classed as “passable”’ and chemistry “mediocre”. Not satisfied with the result Pasteur decided to appear for the entrance examination the next year again. In the second attempt he was ranked 4th. As a part of his preparation for his second attempt Pasteur attended Dumas’s lectures on chemistry . He developed a special fascination for chemistry and all his future work showed a chemical approach, even to biological problems. Pasteur was deeply attached to Ecole Normale. In the notes furnished by Pasteur in 1895 for the publication brought out on the occasion of the centenary of the Ecole Normale Pasteur wrote: “”when I was a student of the College in Arbois, the words Ecole Normale would light up my soul…The surroundings were so dark and gloomy; the only source of light in dingy hall was from the north; the laboratories would not satisfy a single school today; yet, it was here that many ideas flourished; there was a passion for work which, even after fifty years here, draws me into its frenzy…Do you realize that the authors of these notes has always been fondly attached to the Ecole Normale? It is here that he met some great scientists and hundreds of very fine people, found wonderful friends and had the joy of seeing students become teachers.”
It was at Normale Ecole that Pasteur carried out most of his investigations. Emile Roux while commenting on Pasteur’s working style wrote: “In order to be closer to the work place, both the master and his pupils stayed at the Ecole Normale itself. Pasteur used to come first always….As soon as he entered, he would get down to work with a cardboard piece and a pencil in hand. He would observe the cultures and go down to the basement to see animals being experimented upon. Then, we used to do autopsies, showing, microscopic examinations, etc. You must see Pasteur at his microscope in order to have an idea of the patience with which he examined the preparation. Moreover, he observed everything with the same degree of care: nothing escaped his eye (even though he was short sighted!) and we used to joke that he used to see microbes grow in the broth. Later, Pasteur wrote down whatever observed…”
Over the course of 50 years – the second half of the 19th century – Pasteur’s discoveries revolutionized chemistry, agriculture, industry, medicine, surgery and hygiene. These discoveries greatly improved the human condition.
Pasteur was a chemist. He launched his memorable scientific career by studying the shapes of crystals of tartaric acid, an organic acid. He wanted to know why tartaric and paratartaric or racemic acids, which had the same chemical composition exhibited different optical properties in solution. Pasteur had observed that tartrate (salt of tartaric acid) synthesized in laboratory was optically inactive that it was unable to rotate the plane of polarized light but tartrate from grapes could easily rotate a beam of polarized light to the right. He was convinced that the internal structures of the two compounds must be different and this difference would show in their crystal forms. Upon careful examination under a microscope Pasteur found that crystals of tartaric acid looked alike. They possessed an identical asymmetry – which could rotate a beam of polarised light to the right. However, when Pasteur examined the crystals of the paratartic acid he found that there were two types of crystals. Both the types were asymmetrical. But one type was mirror image of the other, in the same way as the right hand mirrors the left.. Pasteur then performed a simple and elegant experiment, perhaps the most simplest and yet the most elegant in the annals of chemistry. Pasteur first separated the two types of crystals in two piles. For separation he only needed a dissection needle and a microscope. After the separation he could then demonstrate that in solution one form rotated the light to the right and the other form to the left. Based on this experiment Pasteur suggested that the optical property shown by a molecule is the result of the internal arrangement of atoms in space. The experiment was the beginning of a new science, which we call stereochemistry—the branch of chemistry dealing with the arrangement of atoms or groups of atoms that make up molecules. Pasteur’s simple experiment demonstrated that organic molecules with the same chemical composition can exist in space in unique stereospecific forms. Pasteur did not stop at proposing that different optical properties in solution is the result of the difference in structure in space. He went a step ahead. He proposed that asymmetrical molecules were indicative of living processes. In other words, living organisms only produce molecules that are of one specific orientation and which are always optically active. The proteins in higher animals are made up of only left-handed amino acids and not their mirror images or the right hand forms. Our body cells only burn the right-handed form of sugar to produce energy and not the left-handed form.
In 1854 Pasteur joined the Faculty of Sciences in Lille as Dean and Professor of Chemistry. It is here that his attention was drawn to the problem of alcoholic fermentation. Lille was an industrial town with a number of distilleries and factories. One distiller named M. Bigot, father of one of Pasteur’s students in chemistry, sought Pasteur’s help in overcoming his difficulties in manufacturing alcohol by fermentation. This was in summer of 1856. Bigot’s problem was that often his fermentation yielded lactic acid instead of alcohol. At the time it was believed that the process of fermentation leading to production of wine, beer and vinegar was a straightforward chemical breakdown of sugar to the desired molecules.
At Bigot’s factory the following observations of Pasteur led him to solve the puzzle of alcoholic fermentation:
i) The yeast cells found in the fermenting vats of wine remained healthy as long as normal production of alcohol continued but when lactic acid formed the yeast cells were found to be mixed with rod-like microbes. It may be noted here that before Pasteur explained the fermentation process scientists believed that yeasts were simply to be either a product of fermentation or catalytic agent that helped the fermentation proceed smoothly.
- ii) Alongwith alcohol (that is ethyl alcohol) other complex organic compounds were found to ber produced during the fermentation. This could not be explained by the simple catalytic breakdown of sugar shown by Lavoisier. There must be other additional processes involved.
iii) Some of the organic compounds produced during the fermentation were found to be asymmetric that is they rotated plane of polarized light. Pasteur believed that living cells only produced asymmetric molecules.
Based on the above observations Pasteur concluded that the fermentation process was carried out by living cells, the yeasts. The fermentation turned sour when the yeast was contaminated with other microorganisms. In this way Pasteur won the battle against Justus von Liebig, who believed that fermentation was a purely a chemical reaction involving non-living oraganisms.
To prevent the fermentation from going sour Pasteur suggested that while the yeast, the organism which produced fermentation, should be allowed to work but not other microorganisms. To achieve this Pasteur suggested to heat the wine slightly to kill the contaminated organism after the fermantation was complete and to close the container. This process of killing undesirasble microorganisms is now called pasteurization. Pasteur’s findinds not only transformed the vinegar, the wine and the beer industry but also changed the bread, milk and cheese industry. Pasteur described his conclusion in the following way: “…I arrived at the conclusion that all diseases concerning wine, at least those that are known presently are determined by microscopic plants which are like ferments. In this way, one can say that when wine is bottled, the germ leading to its disease is also sealed inside. In order to preserve wine, it became necessary to find a way killing such germes. I first tried adding chemical substances which gave me some interesting results. But, they did not satisfy me for several reasons. Finally, I tried the effect of heat and I think I arrived at a very practical processs. All that needs to be done is to keep the wine temperature ranging between 60 to 100 0C, in closed containers, for an hour or two.”
Pasteur’s research on fermentation created great excitement and controversy. His experiments were criticized by those who believed in the theory of spontaneous generation, a subject speculated from Greek ans Roman times, was still debated in the exalted French Academy of Sciences. This made Pasteur to turn his attention to the question of where microorganism came from. To Pasteur, it became obvious, that yeasts and other microorganisms found during fermentation and putrefaction came from the outside. He pointed out that dust of the air was the carrier of contamination.
In 1865 Pasteur was asked to investigate a new disease devastating the silkworms of Southern France. Before taking up the work of investigating the disease, Pasteur knew nothing of silkworms. In fact in his own words, ‘he had never even seen a silkworm.’ A considerable confusion was caused by the presence of two quite independent infectionsss. Pebrine, in which black spots and corpuscles were generally, but not always, present on the worm. The worms affected by this disease often died within the cocoons. In the second type of the disease, flacherine, the worms exhibited no corpuscles or spots but failed to spin cocoons. During investigating the silk-worm disease Pasteur suffered a stroke which partially paralysed his left side. However, Pasteur managed to complete his experiments, analysis and conclusions of the problems plaguing the development of heralthy silkworms. He provided a comprehensive analysis of the disease and its promotion. Pasteur suspected that pebrine corpuscles were responsible for the failure of the worms. By examining the silkworms under the microscope Pasteur was able to identify those free of pebrine and he used only their eggs for breeding. He also excluded from breeding eggs from worms with flacherine, whom he identified by their sluggish behaviour in climbing leaves when about to construct cocoon. Silk-worm farmers were instructed and Pasteur’s methods of selection and how to use the microscope to detect sickness in the worms. In this way the silk industry in France returned to health.
On Pasteur’s work on silk worms Eile Roux wrote: “There are many lessons pertaining to human medicine in this study on disease affecting silkworms!….Without knowing anything about all these doctrines, a chemist, who knew how to use a microscope for experiments, showed that everything boils down to a parasite transmitted by the sick to healthy subjects and by parents to their descendants. The mystery of the contagion is explained in this way…”
In 1880, Pasteur found the cause for boils and Osteomyelitis, a microbe in the form of a “mass of grains” (staphylococcus). He also discovered a microbe in perpetual infection in the form of a “rosary” (streptococcus).
Anthrax, a fatal disease of sheep and cattle, was destroying the sheep industry and economy of France. Robert Koch isolated the anthrax bacillus, which was earlier identified by the French physician Davain, from infected spleens. Koch also showed that under resting conditions the bacillus formed long-lived spores. However, it was not known whether the cultured bacillus, itself, and not something carried along in Kochk’s culture medium caused anthrax in the animals, in which the culture was injected. It was Pasteur, who conclusively proved that it was the anthrax bacillus which was responsible for the disease.
The most celebrated of Pateur’s researches was the development of a vaccine against rabies, also called hydrophobia. Rabies has been known since times immemorial. Democritus is supposed to have been the first to describe rabies, five centuries before Christ. Pliny the Elder in the book VII of his voluminous ‘Natural History’ wrote of “the worm on a dog’s tongue which was thought to be the cause for rabies”. Even during Pasteur’s time rabies was a serious problem in France. The most obvious cause was of course the rabid dog. Many superstitions were associated with the treatment of rabies. The disease had been looked upon with horror. The treatments applied to victims were horrible, for example, cauterizing the bite wounds with a red-hot iron.
In December 1886 Pasteur decided to study rabies. It was not simple. There were no reliable models as well as a methodology which can ensure and renew the transmission of the disease between animals in order to study the disease better. The symptoms of the disease are varitable and it may take weeks to months to develop if they develop at all. In spite of these difficulties Pasteur decided to work on it as he realized that conquest of rabies would be regarded as a great achievement to the world of science and to the public at a large. Pasteur was not alone. A number of scientists in different parts of the world were interested in this disease. After Pasteur entered the field the contagious nature of rabies had been established. This had resulted the beginning of quarantines for dogs coming from a foreign country. Such preventive meausers controlled “local” rabies considerably. But then there was no proven treatment to save people bitten by rabid animals. Pasteur started his research by taking a sample of a saliva of a child who died of rabies and he used it to inoculate rabbits. In less than five years after his research began, he came out with a method to “manufacture” anti-rabies vaccine and a protocol for the vaccination. Initially he demonstrated the efficacy of his vaccine in rabbits and dogs. In 1885 Pasteur used a rabies vaccine developed by him on a badly bitten nine-year old boy, Joseph Meister. Against the advice of his colleagues Pasteur began the course of 14 injection using virus attenuated in the spine of rabbits. Meister survived and he become part of the history of medicine. Joseph Meister later became a caretaker at Pasteur’s Institute.
“I feel that I am harbouring two deep impressions : the first is that science does not have any nation; the second, which seems to be independent of the first, but is still a direct consequence of it, is that science is the highest personification of the nation, as amongst all the peoples, those who march ahead with there thought and inteleligence always lead.”
While presenting the results of his rabies treatment to the Academy of sciences on March 1, 1886 Pasteur called for the creation a rabies vaccine center. Pasteur said : “The cure for rabies resulting from dog bites was well founded. There was the need to create a vaccination for rabies.” The Academ of sciences launched an extensive, international public drive for funding the proposed center and it was able to collect 2,586,680 Frances. With the overwhelming response shown by a number of people it was possible to acquire 11,000 m2 of land on rue Durot. The Institute which bears the name of Pasteur was inaugurated on 14 November 1888 in the presence of French president Sadi Carnot. In his inaugural speech on the occasion Pasteur said: “…It can be said of the immense building which was constructed that, without exception, each stone stands as a material symbol for generosity. All virtues were combined to raise this work structure…My dear colleagues, maintain the enthusiasm that you showed right from the beginning. At the same time, be extremely strict in monitoring. Do not forward anything that cannot be proved in a simple and decisive manner. Adopt a critical mind. By itself, it cannot encourage ideas nor stimulate anything great. But without it, everything is useless. It always has the last word. When I ask of you in this respect and what you will in turn ask of your disciples in the most difficult part for an inventor…” It may be noted that Pasteur became so emotional that he had to ask his son to read out his speech.
In accordance with Pasteur’s wishes the institute was founded as a clinic far rabies treatment, a research center for infection disease and a teaching center. It became one of the premier international biological research. The 1891, the first Pasteur Institute was founded in Saigon (later rebamed HOCHIMINH City) in Vietnam launching but was to become a vast international network of Pasteur Institute. The Institute become so popular both in France and Abroad that it become a symbol of the country.
Pasteur work is not simply the sum of his discoveries. It also represented the revolution of scientific methodology. Pasteur superimposed two indispensable rules of modern research, the freedom of creative imagination necessarily subjected to rigorous experimentation. He would teach his disciples. “…It is an art to propose conclusive experiments without leaving anything to the imagination of the observer. In the beginning any experimental research on a specific subject, imagination should give wings to the thought. At the time of concluding and interpreting the fats that were collected observation, the imagination should be dominated and prevailed over by concrete results of experiments.” In fact Pasteur brought in a revolution, the pasteurian revolution, in science. And when Pasteur died it was not just the world of science and health that were no longer the same, the world itself became so different.”
Pasteur possessed the most important qualities of a true scientist. He had the ability to survey all the known facts about a particular problem and link them for all possible hypotheses; he had the necessary patience and drive to carry out experiments under the strictly controlled conditions and above all the brilliance to draw the correct conclusion from the experimental results. While explaining the importance of experimentation Psteur said: “imagination should give wings to our thoughts but we always need decisive experimental proof, and when the moment comes to draw conclusions and interpret the gathered observations, imagination must be checked and documented by the factual results of the experiment.” Further Pasteur said: “Preconceived ideas are the beacons which light up the path of experimenter and guide him in probing into nature. They become a danger only when they are transformed into fixed ideas. This is the reason why I wanted to see the following words inscribed at the entrance of any temple of science: the greatest mischief of the mind is to believe certain things, as by believing we would want them to be so.”
Louis Pasteur was a great humanist. He never filed any patents for his inventions. He could have easily amassed great wealth. His only ambition was to be useful. He emphasized the importance of research. Pasteur said: “I beseech you to take interest in these sacred domains called laboratories. Ask that there be more and that they be adorned for these are the temples of the future, wealth and well-being. It is here that humanity will learn to read progress and individual harmony in the works of nature, while humanity’s own works are all too often those of barbarism, fanaticism and destruction.” Pasteur was a great patriot. His feelings for his motherland are expressed in his following words: “Science was the main passion of my life. My whole life is devoted to it. In difficult moments, that cannot be separated from long hours of work, the thought of my motherland would encourage me. I used to associate her grandeur with the grandeur of scienc.”
Pasteur died on 28 September 1895. The French Government honored Pasteur with a national funeral, which was held on 5 October 1895. His funeral was attended by thousands of people, who gathered in silence. People were seen crying out of emotion and gratitude. Louis Pasteur was initially cremated in the Cathedral of Notre Dame but it was transferred to a permanent crypt in the Pasteur Institute. The crypt was made of mosaic represents the principal periods of his work. In 1940 the invading Germans ordered Joseph Meister to open the crypt for inspection, but Meiser chose to kill himself rather than to so.
Interesting facts about Louis Pasteur
*Originally published by Molli in October 2019 and Updated by Vanessa R in August 2022 and Updated by Vanessa R in July 2023
Louis Pasteur was a French scientist in the 19th century. He is sometimes called the father of microbiology and the father of germ theory. Pasteur made huge strides in his research of the cause of diseases, and he also went on to discover several cures for diseases that ravaged the world at the time.
He also revolutionalized how we preserve food and make it safer to eat. Ever wonder where the word “pasteurization” comes from? Well, Mr. Pasteur, of course! Keep reading to learn more about this ingenious French scientist. My top 15 interesting facts about Louis Pasteur coming right up!
- Louis Pasteur is one of the fathers of the germ theory
In the 19th century, people weren’t aware that germs are what cause and exacerbates illnesses. It may seem obvious to us now that washing your hands is essential to stop the spreading of germs, but back in Pasteur’s time, people just weren’t aware of how these things worked.
The germ theory of disease had been around since the Middle Ages, but it wasn’t widely accepted. Although the smallpox vaccine was common in Europe by the 19th century, scientists and doctors still didn’t really understand how it worked, or how to apply the same concept to different diseases.
Pasteur changed things when he began studying germs in 1860. He began conducting experiments on the relationship between germs and diseases, and discovered the cause and effect of the puerperal fever.
From here, Pasteur continued to study, and his experiments led him to discover that certain micro-organisms that infected animals and humans eventually led to diseases.
- Louis Pasteur is most famous for developing the pasteurization process
I’m sure that most if not all of you have heard of pasteurization. It is a process used to sanitize certain food products. After Pasteur realized that micro-organisms could cause disease, he knew that he needed to develop a way to prevent these pesky little carriers from getting inside comestible products.
His research also showed that micro-organisms were responsible for spoiling drinks like beer, wine and milk. He developed a process in which these beverages were heated to high temperatures, killing any sort of bacteria.
Pasteur patented his new process in 1865, and soon it was applied to wine, beer and milk. We still use the same process today!
- Louis Pasteur developed the first vaccines for rabies
Once Pasteur had realized how diseases were caused, he began working on several different vaccines for prevalent diseases at the time. This included rabies.
To create the vaccine for rabies, Pasteur infected a group of rabbits. He went on to remove some of the infected tissue, dried it out, and then reinserted it into the rabbits. This is the concept behind a vaccine: using the disease to fight itself. When you are vaccinated, the immune system is given something that looks similar to a particular bacteria, which helps it become stronger if it becomes actually infected. Make sense?
When Pasteur had success with his group of rabbits, he moved onto dogs. He successfully vaccinated over 50 rabid dogs. He knew the next step would be to test his vaccine on humans, but because he was not a licensed doctor, he technically wasn’t allowed to.
This rule was thrown out the window when a desperate family asked Pasteur for help with their 9-year-old child who had been badly bitten by a rabid dog. Pasteur gave the boy his vaccination, and he made a rapid recovery! This changed everything in the world of medicine and inspired the creation of many other vaccines to come.
- Louis Pasteur helped save the silk industry
In the 19th century, silkworms in France were becoming infected with 2 diseases called pébrine and flacherie. This meant that farmers in southern France were being hit with big losses, and were therefore unable to produce large quantities of silk.
Pasteur stepped in to try to save the day. He began to conduct experiments to try to figure out what was going on. He noticed that the infected silkworms were covered in something called a “corpuscle.” A corpuscle is simply a cell that is sometimes found in organisms.
Pasteur concluded that the corpuscles were causing the pébrine disease in the silkworms. He went on to discover that the disease was heredity. He developed a technique to eradicate the disease: after the female silkworms laid their eggs, the eggs were then examined. If the eggs had corpuscles, they were quickly destroyed to stop the spread of pébrine. The silk farmers in France rejoiced!
- Louis Pasteur copied some of his work
Pasteur was an extremely successful man, but he was also known for his secrecy. He even went so far as to urge his family to hide his notebooks after his death, so that no one could steal his ideas. Well, it turns out he was hiding more than just his bright ideas.
In 1946, Pasteur’s grandson went against his wishes and donated his notebooks to the Bibliothèque nationale de France, or the National Library of France. Inside, researchers discovered that Pasteur borrowed many of his ideas from other scientists.
For example, Pasteur is often credited with a vaccine for anthrax. Well, it turns out that Pasteur stole the vaccine from a French veterinarian named Jean Joseph Henri Toussaint. Toussaint developed the vaccine for anthrax, and shared his discoveries with Pasteur.
Pasteur then turned around and presented the findings in a public demonstration in 1881, and he neglected to give Toussaint any credit whatsoever. He also went on to get a patent for the vaccine, again without any mention of Toussaint.
- Louis Pasteur lost 3 of his 5 children to typhoid
Pasteur married Marie Laurent in 1849 after meeting her at the University of Strasbourg, where Marie’s father was the university’s chancellor. Marie was a big help to Pasteur throughout his career, working as his assistant.
The couple had 5 children together, but sadly 3 died from the disease typhoid. One can assume that this loss motivated Pasteur to work towards the eradication of deadly diseases!
- Louis Pasteur won the Alhumbert Prize
Pasteur was a celebrated scientist in his time, and won many awards for his work. In 1862, he was awarded the Alhumbert Prize for his work in spontaneous generation.
Until this point, many in the medical and scientific world believed that living creatures could appear from nonliving substances. For example, it was commonly believed that fleas were formed from dust, and maggots were formed from dead flesh.
Pasteur debunked this theory. When he was performing fermentation experiments on wine, Pasteur determined that the skin of grapes were a natural source of yeast, and that sterilized grapes could not produce a juice that could be fermented. This questioned the theory of spontaneous generation.
This caused an uproar in the scientific community, as spontaneous generation was widely accepted. To settle the argument, the French Academy of Sciences said that they would award the Alhumbert Prize and 2,500 francs to anyone who could come up with evidence that supported or discouraged the concept.
Through an experiment, Pasteur showed that microbes could not grow in a sterilized environment. This showed that living organisms came from outside contact with other microbes, and could not be spontaneously generated.
- Louis Pasteur was also interested in the arts
Science wasn’t Pasteur’s only interest! When he was 5 years old, his family moved to a French town called Arbois. Pasteur wasn’t a very studious child and preferred spending time outdoors, as he was interested in fishing and painting.
When he was 15, he was known to create portraits of his family using pastels and oil paint. These paintings were actually later moved to the Pasteur Institute in Paris (which I’ll tell you more about coming up!).
When Pasteur was 17, he enrolled in the Collège Royal de Besançon, where he earned a Bachelor of Art. It wasn’t until 2 years later that he began to show an interest in the sciences, going on to earn a Bachelor of Science from the same school.
- Louis Pasteur founded the Pasteur Institute
Between 1854-1857, Pasteur worked as the dean of the faculty of sciences at Lille University. From there, he went on to work at as the director of scientific studies at the École Normale Supérieure, where he had earned his Masters of Science in 1845, and then a doctorate in sciences in 1847.
After serving as the director of scientific studies at the École Normale Supérieure for 10 years, Pasteur decided that he wanted to create his own scientific institute, particularly to study the rabies vaccine. I present, the Pasteur Institute in Paris! He founded the institute in 1887, and served as the director there until his death in 1895.
Pasteur also created other Pasteur Institutes around the world, and today there are 32 in 29 countries around the world.
- Louis Pasteur is buried in the Pasteur Institute in Paris
In 1868, Pasteur had a severe brain stroke which paralysed the entire left side of his body. He recovered, but in 1894, he suffered another stroke. This time he was unable to recover. He died in September of 1895 in Paris.
At the time, he was given a state funeral and was then buried in the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. His remains were eventually moved from the Notre-Dame and placed in a crypt in the Pasteur Institute in Paris.
Inside, you’ll find Pasteur’s tomb, which is decorated with a mosaic that depicts his scientific discoveries.
- Pasteur gave his birds a bacterial injection
Pasteur gave his fowl an injection of germs. The birds were sick, but surprisingly they didn’t pass away. However, they had a resistance to further cholera injections as a result. Pasteur realized that weaker disease strains may aid in the immune system development of animals.
- Initially, Pasteur was a chemist
He learned back then that many molecules and chemical substances are “chiral.” That term comes from cheir, which is the Greek word meaning “handed.” Many molecules are “handed,” in the same way that the left and right hands are not only mirror copies of one another but also asymmetric. In general, the characteristics of “left-handed ones” differ from those of their “right-handed,” mirror copies.
- Additionally, Pasteur created three early vaccinations
One protected against anthrax, one stopped rabies infections, and one stopped chicken cholera. In general, Pasteur and Edward Jenner showed the undeniable benefits of vaccinations for saving lives. The final two vaccines developed by Pasteur, unfortunately, relied on enormous lies for widespread adoption.
- In his early years, he had a typical academic record
He wasn’t a highly intellectual student in his early years; instead, he enjoyed fishing and drawing. He created several pastel drawings and pictures of his family, friends, and neighbours. The Collège d’Arbois served as Pasteur’s secondary school. He departed for Paris in October 1838 to join the Pension Barbet, but he later returned in November due to homelessness.
He enrolled in Besançon’s Collège Royal in 1839 to study philosophy, and in 1840 he received his Bachelor of Letters. While pursuing a degree in science with specific mathematics, he was hired as an instructor at the college in Besançon. In 1841, he failed his initial exam. In Dijon, where he received his Bachelor of Science in General Science, he was able to pass the baccalauréat Scientifique (general science).
- Pasteur established the organization that bears his name in 1887
The institute that carries Pasteur’s name was established in 1887. The Pasteur Institute aspires to carry on its founder’s pursuit of the aims of understanding microbes and curing and preventing illnesses.
Its scientists have produced eight physicians who have won medical Nobel Prizes. Its scientists were the first to identify the HIV virus, and their work has improved therapies for illnesses that are fatal, including diphtheria, influenza, plague, polio, tetanus, TB, and yellow fever.
From 1888 on, Pasteur and his wife Marie resided at the Institute in Paris, where he built a sizable apartment for himself to live in for the remainder of his life. After the passing of her husband, she remained there for an additional 15 years, up until her own passing in 1910.
- He saved the wine industry
When Pasteur recognised the wine was contaminated, the biggest problem in all of Europe was how to preserve it. He noted that when wine was boiled to remove microorganisms, the flavour was horrible. In a series of tests, Pasteur found that bringing wine to a temperature of 55 degrees killed bacteria without altering the flavour. The wine business was saved by this procedure, afterwards known as pasteurisation. Today, it is often used to preserve food contaminated-free.
- He worked from a mobile lab when he had a stroke
Pasteur had a stroke when he was just 45 years old, paralysing the left side of his body. But in order for him to work from his hospital bed, his coworkers put up a mobile laboratory.
- He was devoted to his family
Not only was Louis Pasteur a brilliant scientist, but he was also a loving father and husband. Pasteur made time for his loved ones despite having a demanding career in immunology and microbiology. He married Marie Laurent in 1849; the couple had five kids together. He loved spending time with his family and felt safe in their company. His family gave him security and support, allowing him to work on his scientific projects with a feeling of balance and purpose.
- Louis Pasteur had an unusual fear of blood
Louis Pasteur had an unusual fear of blood, which is surprising given his ground-breaking contributions to medicine and microbiology. He apparently disliked the sight of blood and would experience dizziness or even pass out. He had to excuse himself from surgeries and dissections because of this fear, which was severe enough.
- He preferred living in a rural area
Louis Pasteur found comfort in the ease of rural life, far from the busy city. He loved the serenity of the countryside because it allowed him to escape the demands of his scientific work and live a more calm life despite his fame. In his rural Arbois, France, residence, Pasteur constantly sought solace from the stresses of life. This setting was serene and beautiful.
He could relax, think, and find inspiration far from the craziness of the city, which would later inspire his ground-breaking study. The fact that he preferred to live in a rural area was a reflection of how much he valued the natural world and how it could benefit his mind and spirit.
49 Facts About Louis Pasteur You Should Know
Louis Pasteur was a French biologist, microbiologist, and chemist. He is best known for the discovery of the principals of pasteurization, microbial fermentation, and vaccination.[1] With these 49 facts about Louis Pasteur, let us learn more about his early life, family, education, work, inventions, patents, and accomplishments.
About his childhood and early life
- Louis Pasteur wasborn in Dole, France to Jean-Joseph Pasteur and his wife Jeanne-Etiennette Roqui on December 27, 1822. Two of his younger sisters died at the age of 25 and 26.
- Louis Pasteur’s father frequently said to him“if only you could become someday professor in the College of Arbois I should be the happiest man on earth.” His parents were concerned with providing him a good education and they always said: “we will make of him an educated man.
- During his childhood, Louis had a peculiar interestin fishing, painting, and sketching.
- Pasteur on his way back to home from college would conduct, with his friends,fishing parties. These parties were so pleasant that they continued for many years to come. Pasteur also made large portraits of neighbors, male and female. Some of these portraits are still available in the houses of Arbois, all bearing his signature.
- He got admissionin an elementary school in Arbois in 1831.
- The principal of the college who followed and watched this little kid (Pasteur) used to say “He will go far.It is not for the chair of a small college like ours that we must prepare him; he must become a professor in a royal college.”
- Pasteur’s interest in chemistrywas so profound that Pasteur used to ask his chemistry professor, Darley, many questions regarding the subject. However, the puzzled professor would declare that it was for him to interrogate Pasteur and not for Pasteur to interrogate him.
Marriage and family
- He met his wifeMarie Laurent (daughter of the university’s rector) in 1849 at the University of Strasbourg, where he was a professor of Chemistry.
- Louis Pasteur had five children.However, only two of these survived childhoods, the other three died of typhoid.
- After completing his degree, he was appointed a tutor at the same college. After failing in a degree science course in mathematics in 1841,he managed to pass general science degree in 1842 but in a mediocre grade. After a few years in 1845, he received a Master of Science degree. He also earned his doctorate in Science in 1847.
- Some 30 institutes, a large number of schools, hospitals, buildings, and streets bear his name.Louis also earned France’s highest decoration, the Legion of Honour. In fact, Louis Pasteur’s father who was a tanner and a sergeant major was also decorated with the Legion of Honour during the Napoleonic Wars.
Known for/accomplishments
- He isbest known for his food preparing process known as pasteurization. He invented the process of pasteurization in 1864.[11] The process of pasteurization treats milk and wine to stop bacterial contamination.
- He is also credited with the development of the first vaccine for rabies and anthrax.
- Louis Pasteur is also popularly known as the“father of microbiology”.
- He is also known as one of the fathers of “germ theory.”He demonstrated that bacteria grew in sterilized but open flask, whereas in sterilized and sealed flasks, nothing ever developed.
- In 1877, he put forward the ‘germ theory’ of disease.
- Once he was convinced that bacteria were responsible for the souring of milk, wine, and beer,he wanted to remove bacteria from these items. The first test on boiling milk and then cooling it to avoid the growth of bacteria in it was made on April 20, 1862. And he succeeded in his attempt to stop the growth of bacteria in these products.
- An interesting point in the lifeof Louis came when he came across the discovery of the German Chemist Eilhardt Mitscherlich who showed that tartrates and paratartrates behaved differently towards the polarized light. Tartrates rotated the plane of polarized light while paratartrates did not. However, these two compounds displayed identical chemical properties.
Education and further work
- In 1840, he obtainedB.A. from College of Royal de Besancon.
- The Royal college paid him twenty-four francs a month,in addition to his food and lodging.
- He also provedthat microorganisms come from other microorganisms and not from spontaneous generation.
- In 1848, he becamethe professor of chemistry at the University of Strasbourg.
- In 1857, he became the director of scientific studies at École Normale Supérieure and resigned from his duties in 1867.
- In 1857, he was able to demonstrate the formation of Lactic acid in milk and butter.
- Louis Pasteur received numerous awards during his life including the prestigious Rumford Medal and Copley Medal awarded by the Royal Society.
- Pasteur studied the ability of organic compounds to rotate the plane of polarized light. After his study, he concluded that asymmetry was one of the fundamental characteristics of living matter.
- Pasteur Effect:the fermentation process could be arrested by passing air through the fermenting fluid. He said that there is a life form which could only function in the presence of oxygen. This important conclusion from Louis Pasteur also led to the introduction of the terms, ‘aerobic and anaerobic’
- Pasteurization, the process of heating at around 57 degree Celsiusfor a few minutes, is named after Louis Pasteur.
- Silkworm eggs could no longer be produced in France and they could also not import the eggs from other countries because the disease spread all over. Louis Pasteur was requested to study the disease. He soon started investing his time and became an expert breeder and identified the disease affecting silkworms. It took him 5 years to identify and provide solutions to prevent further the contamination of the silkworm eggs by the disease-causing organisms.
- In 1873, he was elected as an associate memberof Academie de Medecine.
- His first important discovery in vaccinationhappened in 1879 when he was able to find a solution for chicken cholera.
- Louis Pasture’s discovery led tothe understanding of microbes and diseases. Pasteur Institute is the world’s leader in battling infectious diseases.
- Did you ever wonder why surgical instruments are boiled before use? It is because there are microorganisms that are sitting on these instruments which can cause infection in the body of the individual when operated with these instruments without washing them. The washing of these instruments is a direct result of Louis Pasteurs’ discovery of the microbe and how these tiny organisms can cause infections.
- Louis Pasteur was an effective observer.He himself once stated: “chance only favors the prepared mind.”
- In 1854 at the age of 32, he became the dean of the faculty of scienceat the University of Lille.
- At the time, Lille was a centre of alcohol manufacture in France. In 1856, a man called Bigo approached Louis with his problem regarding souring of the fermented alcohol. He requested Pasteur to study the problem and find a solution. Pasteur invested his time and energy and could soon figure out the reason behind souring of the alcohol.
- Louis Pasteur won the Alhumbert Prize in 1862 carrying 2,500 Francs for demonstrating that germscould only come from outside.
- In 1865, the silk industry was in danger because parasites were killing silkworms.Pasteur discovered the microbes that were infecting silkworms and thus helped save the industry.
- Interestingly, when Pasteur began his investigation of the disease affecting silkworms, he had never seen a silkworm before.
- In 1885, he administered his vaccine to a 9-year-old boy who had been bitten by a rabid dog.The implementation was successful and the boy survived. Noteworthy here is that Pasteur had no medical license to administer the vaccine and had he failed, it would have landed him in trouble. Surprisingly, after the success of the vaccine, the legalities were forgotten and Louis Pasteur became a national hero.
- In 1885, after the success of rabies vaccine, an era of preventive medicine began.
- In 1887 he founded the Pasteur Institute in Paris and became its director.The Institute was inaugurated on November 14, 1888. He remained in the chair until his death on September 28, 1895. It is one of the leading medical institutions in the world. Interestingly, eight Pasteur Institute scientists have been awarded the Nobel Prize for medicine and physiology.
- In 1868, Pasteur had a brain hemorrhage which affected the left side of his body.His working ability since then was compromised. However, he had made some remarkable discoveries by that time which helped him engage further with help from fellow researchers in the cause he was following for many years.
- Louis Pasteur took to study the diseases of beer because he was a patriotic man at heart and wanted to serve his motherland Franceby helping the French beer make a reputation which would be equal, if not superior, to that of Germany. French manufacturers of beer were at that time not able to preserve beer for a long time which was hurting the trade of the beverage.
- On January 28, 1873 Louis Pasteur was granted the patent for BREWING BEER AND ALE, U.S. Patent No. 135,245.
- In 1879 he began investigating anthrax epidemic that killed a large number of sheep and was also attacking human beings as well. After he conducted his study and experiment relating to anthrax, he immunized 70 farm animals with his researched vaccine and the experiment was a huge success.During his time people believed that bacteria appeared due to spontaneous generation. They thought that bacteria appeared out of nowhere. However, Pasteur believed and also proved with his experiments that bacteria were a living thing that came from other living things.
- “The Times” in Great Britain called Pasteur “one of the scientific glories of France.”
- In 1895, he died from a stroke. He wasa deeply religious man throughout his life.
- He was buried inthe cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris. However, his remains were transferred to a Neo-Byzantine crypt at the Pasteur Institute in 1896.
Louis Pasteur – quick facts
| Born | 27 December 1822, Dole, France |
| Died | 28 September 1895, Marnes-la-Coquette, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Age at the time of death | 72 years |
| Field of Work | Biology Microbiology Chemistry |
| Awards | Rumford Medal 1892, 1856 Copley Medal 1874, Albert Medal 1882, Montyon Prizes 1859 Leeuwenhoek Medal 1895 |
| Scientific contributions | Pasteurization |
| Education | École Normale Supérieure (1847), École Normale Supérieure (1843–1845), Lycée Saint-Louis |
| Parents | Jean Joseph Pasteur | Jeanne Etiennette Roqui |
| Sibling | Josephine Pasteur | Emilie Pasteur |
| Spouse | Marie Pasteur |
| Children | Jeanne Pasteur | Camile Pasteur | Cécile Pasteur | Jean Baptiste Pasteur | Marie Louise Pasteur |
Compiled & Shared by- This paper is a compilation of groupwork provided by the
Team, LITD (Livestock Institute of Training & Development)
Image-Courtesy-Google
Reference-On Request.
