Robert Koch's World-Changing Discovery
On this day in 1882, German physician and microbiologist Robert Koch forever changed medicine: he announced that he had discovered the bacterium that causes tuberculosis. At a time when tuberculosis was killing millions worldwide, his research opened the door to a new understanding of the disease and ways to combat this scourge.
TL;DR
- Robert Koch discovered the bacterium that causes tuberculosis on March 24, 1882.
- He previously identified the bacteria responsible for anthrax (1876) and cholera (1883).
- Koch's work provided scientific proof for the germ theory of disease.
- He developed four fundamental postulates for linking microorganisms to specific diseases.
- Koch founded the Royal Prussian Institute for Infectious Diseases in Berlin.
- He received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1905 for his work on tuberculosis.
- Koch is considered the father of modern bacteriology.