Lab notes from Michael Heidelberger and Oswald Avery's experiments on pneumococcus bacteria and polysaccharides (3 of 4)

Lab notes from Michael Heidelberger and Oswald Avery's experiments on pneumococcus bacteria and polysaccharides (3 of 4)

Contributor(s):
Heidelberger, Michael
Avery, Oswald Theodore, 1877-1955
Publication:
Produced: [April 1925-January 1927]
Language(s):
English
Format:
Text
Subject(s):
Polysaccharides
Streptococcus pneumoniae
Genre(s):
Archival Materials
Laboratory notes
Abstract:
The laboratory notes document Heidelberger's and Oswald Avery's seminal experiments, conducted between 1923 and 1925, through which they found that powerful antigens of type-specific pneumococcus bacteria were polysaccharides--carbohydrates--not proteins, as scientists had assumed. Heidelberger and Avery showed that it was what Avery had called the "soluble specific substance" (soluble because it could be dissolved in saline solution), the polysaccharides, contained in the capsules of the various types of pneumococcus bacteria, which determined the virulence of each type. Their discovery was a crucial advance in the application of chemistry to immunology. For the rest of his long scientific career, Heidelberger explored the many implications of this discovery both for experimental science and for medicine.
Copyright:
The National Library of Medicine believes this item to be in the public domain. (More information)
Extent:
42 pages
NLM Unique ID:
101584940X179 (See in Profiles in Science)
Profiles in Science ID:
DHBBLV
Permanent Link:
http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101584940X179
Archival Collection:
The Michael Heidelberger Papers (Profiles in Science)