Unsung Heroes.....
I realise that I am on a bit of a blogging roll today but there is a lot going on within my grey matter....
I was reading Time Magazine today, the "Milestones section" and read about a scientist called Maurice Hilleman who died last week at the age of 85. I have copied a clip from his obituary from The Telegraph (requires free registration) so you can read about this amazing man who up until 5 minutes ago I had never heard of...
"...Over a 40-year career, Hilleman developed some three dozen vaccines, probably saving more lives than any other scientist in the 20th century. In addition he researched the behaviour of viruses and analysed the genetic changes that occur when the influenza virus mutates, work which has enabled epidemiologists to track its development, give early warnings of pandemics and design vaccines in advance of outbreaks.".....
"...In the early stages of the Asian flu pandemic of 1957, Hilleman deduced from press reports of the disease in Hong Kong that the virus might have undergone one of its periodic "shifts" and sent for specimens to enable him to isolate it. As he suspected, blood samples showed that nobody had any antibodies to the virus. Fearing a repeat of the 1918 Spanish flu which killed some 20 million people around the world, he immediately notified the World Health Organisation and vaccine manufacturers, to whom he sent samples of the virus. He also insisted that chicken breeders should spare the lives of cockerels they would otherwise have slaughtered, enabling them to fertilise the millions of eggs needed to prepare the new vaccine. By the time the disease had arrived in its full force in America, 40 million doses of vaccine had been delivered, saving tens if not hundreds of thousands of lives."
What an incredible person.
I was reading Time Magazine today, the "Milestones section" and read about a scientist called Maurice Hilleman who died last week at the age of 85. I have copied a clip from his obituary from The Telegraph (requires free registration) so you can read about this amazing man who up until 5 minutes ago I had never heard of...
"...Over a 40-year career, Hilleman developed some three dozen vaccines, probably saving more lives than any other scientist in the 20th century. In addition he researched the behaviour of viruses and analysed the genetic changes that occur when the influenza virus mutates, work which has enabled epidemiologists to track its development, give early warnings of pandemics and design vaccines in advance of outbreaks.".....
"...In the early stages of the Asian flu pandemic of 1957, Hilleman deduced from press reports of the disease in Hong Kong that the virus might have undergone one of its periodic "shifts" and sent for specimens to enable him to isolate it. As he suspected, blood samples showed that nobody had any antibodies to the virus. Fearing a repeat of the 1918 Spanish flu which killed some 20 million people around the world, he immediately notified the World Health Organisation and vaccine manufacturers, to whom he sent samples of the virus. He also insisted that chicken breeders should spare the lives of cockerels they would otherwise have slaughtered, enabling them to fertilise the millions of eggs needed to prepare the new vaccine. By the time the disease had arrived in its full force in America, 40 million doses of vaccine had been delivered, saving tens if not hundreds of thousands of lives."
What an incredible person.
posted by Madame Chiang at 1:57 pm
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