The Mold in Dr. Florey's Coat: The Story of the Penicillin Miracle

by Eric Lax

Paperback, 2005

Status

Available

Collection

Science

Genres

Publication

Holt Paperbacks (2004), Edition: 1St Edition, 336 pages

Description

"Admirable, superbly researched ... perhaps the most exciting tale of science since the apple dropped on Newton's head."--Simon Winchester, The New York Times. Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin in his London laboratory in 1928 and its eventual development as the first antibiotic by a team at Oxford University headed by Howard Florey and Ernst Chain in 1942 led to the introduction of the most important family of drugs of the twentieth century. Yet credit for penicillin is largely misplaced. Neither Fleming nor Florey and his associates ever made real money from their achievements; instead it was the American labs that won patents on penicillin's manufacture and drew royalties from its sale. Why this happened, why it took fourteen years to develop penicillin, and how it was finally done is a fascinating story of quirky individuals, missed opportunities, medical prejudice, brilliant science, shoestring research, wartime pressures, misplaced modesty, conflicts between mentors and their proteges, and the passage of medicine from one era to the next.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member NielsenGW

In 1928, Alexander Fleming, an eccentric Scottish microbiologist, saw how, by chance, penicillium mold inhibited the growth of certain dangerous and lethal bacteria. After a few years dabbling with his find, he gave up on it entirely to focus on other enzyme research. Ten years later, a group of

dedicated chemists and other assorted scientists--Howard Florey, Ernst Chain, and Norman Heatley among them--happened upon Fleming's earlier research and decided to try to conduct large-scale experiments on the nature and mechanisms of the mold extract itself. The work that these fellows from Oxford conducted eventually resulted in Nobel Prizes and the virtual death-knoll for war-inflicted septicemia and lethal secondary infections. Eric Lax presents the history of the research with a rich fountain of personal correspondence and just enough cattiness to make scientists look like real people. A quick and engaging read.

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LibraryThing member aadyer

A readable account of Floreys teams efforts to synthesise penicillin after Fleming first described it. Interesting and set against the historical context of the Second World War, there's a sense of urgency about the story which is nicely conveyed. Overall, there's not an overwhelming amount of

technical details but enough to keep you intrigued. A good, robust account of what happened and the subsequent misappropriation of credit, but this will appeal mainly to those with an interest in the history of medicine, mycology, and historical biography

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