Alexander FLEMING 1881 – 1955

He was a British bacteriologist. He found penicillin, the first example of groundbreaking antibiotics in the treatment of diseases caused by bacteria. He was born in Lochfield, Ayrshire, Scotland. In 1906, he graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School at Paddington, which is within the structure of London University. In 1908, he received his master's degree with his thesis on “Acute Bacterial Infections” and a certificate of excellence. His success was instrumental in the appointment of Edward Wright, a professor of bacteriology at the School's Vaccination Department, and never left the institution he entered as a student. In 1928, he was promoted to professor of bacteriology. In 1946, he took over the administration of the Vaccination Division from Wright and served two months upon his death. Fleming, who devoted his 49-year professional life to researching factors that would strengthen the defense of the human body against bacterial infections and began the era of antibiotics by finding penicillin in 1928, provided a great service to human health. In 1943, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in London, and in the following year received the title of “Sir”. In 1945, he shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine with Florey and Chain, who carried out commercial production of penicillin.