Pioneers of Microbiology

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Pioneers of Microbiology / Microbiology in Latin America

The Spanish Society of Microbiology has always had great interest –and you think it should be one of your main goals– in collaborating with the countries of Latin America in very diverse aspects related to the promotion and development of microbiology. The SEM has been a member of the Latin American Association of Microbiology (ALAM) since 2008 and has participated since 2004 in its biennial congresses. To spread knowledge of the history of microbiology in Latin American countries and in Spain, the journal International Microbiology publishes on its back cover the photograph of a microbiologist who has been a pioneer in his country in some field of microbiology. A short biography of that person is included on page A2 of each issue. Below is a list of microbiologists presented between 2004 and 2009, and an International Microbiology article on ALAM.

This section is in charge of Mercè Piqueras and Ricardo Guerrero.

Antonio Vargas Reyes (1816-1873)

Colombia

He published a monograph on public health in which he established standards for the prevention and treatment of cholera. He was co-founder of the first Colombian scientific journals (La Lanceta and La Gaceta Médica), and also of a private school of Medicine

Néstor Morales Villazón (1879-1957)

Bolivia

He founded the Faculty of Dentistry of La Paz and the Journal of Bacteriology and Hygiene, which he used as a platform to improve hygiene in Bolivia and to promote prevention through vaccination against infectious diseases, mainly typhoid fever.

Isaac González Martínez (1871-1954)

Puerto Rico

He founded the Institute of Tropical Medicine, which later became the School of Tropical Medicine, a precursor to the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine.

Carlos Justiniano Ribeiro Chagas (1879-1934)

Brazil

Discoverer of American trypanosomiasis - known as Chagas disease

Rodolfo Robles Valverde (1878-1939)

Guatemala

He identified the parasitic nematode Onchocerca volvulus as the causative agent of onchocerciasis.

Daniel Alcides Carrión (1857-1885)

Peru

It proved that the Oroya fever and the ?? Peruvian wart ?? They were two different clinical manifestations of an infection that we know today as? Carrión's disease? (a bartonellosis).

Carlos G. Malbran (1862-1940)

Argentina

Promoter of public health in Argentina. He was the first technical inspector of public health appointed by the municipality of Buenos Aires.

José de Arechavaleta (1838-1912)

Uruguay

Founder of the Bacteriology Laboratory, the forerunner of what would become the Institute of Public Health. In 1886 he wrote, together with his colleague Pedro Hormaeche, a brochure describing the bacillus virgula, with instructions to prevent cholera

Carlos J. Finlay (1833-1915)

Cuba

He discovered the vector of yellow fever and, among other advances, contributed to the reduction of neonatal mortality through the implementation of sterilization processes.

Louis D. Beauperthuy (1807-1871)

Venezuela

He made detailed observations on the spread and treatment of numerous diseases and described scabies as a parasitic infection for the first time.

Francisco X. Balmis (1753-1819)

Spain

He led the first world campaign against smallpox in 1803 as a doctor for the Royal Philanthropic Vaccine Expedition aboard the ship María Pita. The mission was to expand the vaccine throughout the overseas territories under Spanish rule.

Clodomiro Picado Twigth (1887-1944)

Costa Rica

Pioneer in toxicology. He developed anti-poisons serums and his book on this topic earned him international recognition. His experiments carried out between 1915 and 1927 demonstrated the inhibitory activity of Penicillium.

Alfonso L. Herrera (1868-1942)

Mexico

He developed the hypothesis of plasmogenesis, which led to the understanding of the uniformity of nature and the origin of life. His books have been considered the best Darwinian works of the time in Mexico.

Eugenio Espejo (1747-1795)

Ecuador

Precursor of bacteriology. He understood the role of air as a vector of living organisms that cause disease, and advanced the idea of the presence of specific agents in the fermentation process.

Juan Noé Crevani (1877-1947)

Chile

He worked on infectious diseases, including malaria, which was later eradicated from his country thanks to the work of his collaborators

Oswaldo Gonçalbes Cruz (1872-1917)

Brazil

Considered the father of environmental hygiene in Brazil. He managed to eradicate yellow fever in Rio de Janeiro and Belém do Parà. He introduced preventive measures against various diseases in his country.

Jaime Ferrán y Clua (1851-1929)

Spain

Recognized for his work in active immunization against cholera. Between 1881 and 1885 he administered the vaccine to 50,000 people and later defended the application of similar measures to prevent other infections.