Cards (22)

  • The Germ Theory
    Although people's understanding of anatomy had improved greatly during the Renaissance, there was still plenty to learn. The cause of disease was an area that still needed proper explanation
  • Pasteur was the first to suggest that Germs cause disease
  • Germs and other micro-organisms were discovered as early as the 17th century
  • Spontaneous generation

    The theory that microbes were created by decaying matter, like rotting food or human waste
  • Spontaneous generation led people to believe that disease caused germs
  • Pasteur was employed to find the explanation for the souring of sugar beet used in fermenting industrial alcohol

    1857
  • Pasteur's answer
    Germs were to blame
  • Pasteur proved germs in the air
    1. Sterilised water in a closed flask stayed sterile
    2. Sterilised water in an open flask bred germs
  • Pasteur published his Germ Theory
    1861
  • Pasteur argued that microbes in the air caused decay, not the other way round
  • Pasteur suggested that some germs cause disease
  • Pasteur published evidence proving there was a link between germs and disease, demonstrating that germs caused a disease in silkworms
    1867
  • Pasteur's discovery was partly due to Antonie van Leeuwenhoek's invention of the microscope in the 17th century
  • More advanced microscopes were developed during the 1800s
  • Advanced microscopes allowed scientists to see much clearer images with a lot less light distortion
  • The Germ Theory was met with scepticism at first...

    People couldn't believe tiny microbes caused disease. It didn't help that the germ responsible for each disease had to be identified individually, as this meant it was several years before the theory became useful
  • ... but it eventually gained popularity in Britain
    . The theory helped inspire Joseph Lister to develop aantiseptics
    . The theory confirmed John Snow's findings about cholera
    . The theory linked disease to poor living conditions (like contaminated water). This put pressure on the government to pass the 1875 Public Health Act
  • Robert Koch
    German scientist who built on Pasteur's work by linking specific diseases to the particular microbe that caused them
  • Microbe hunting
    Linking specific diseases to the particular microbe that caused them
  • Diseases identified by Koch
    • Anthrax
    • Septicaemia
    • Tuberculosis
    • Cholera
  • Koch's scientific methods
    1. Used agar jelly to create solid cultures
    2. Used dyes to stain the bacteria so they were more visible under the microscope
    3. Employed the newly-invented photography to record his findings
  • Koch's techniques were important as they allowed other microbe hunters to find the specific bacteria which cause other diseases