“Antibiosis”

After the publication of the “Origin of the Species” in 1859, Darwinism became all the rage. Biologic organisms from microbes to mammals, and people too, compete. Only the fit survive. Neitzsche’s übermensch said that “What does not destroy me makes me stronger.”

It had long been known that poultices containing certain molds and fungi worked better than others to prevent putrefaction of wounds. Once bacterial culture techniques became established, mini-Darwinan battles among competing organisms could be observed firsthand. The observation that some molds thrived to the detriment of bacteria was called “antibiosis” by Paul Vuillemin in 1889.

The impact of this observation was not appreciated until late August in the summer of 1928, when Alexander Fleming returned from vacation to discover that some of the staphylococcus cultures that he left behind had become contaminated with a mold. He noticed a zone around the mold where the bacteria seemed not to grow. It turned out that a soil fungus, which he identified as Penicillium notatum, had infected the Petri dish and was making a product that leached into the surrounding agar and held the growth of the surrounding bacteria at bay.

While penicillin destroyed bacteria, it appeared to be nontoxic to humans. Penicillin was effective against other “Gram-positive” bacteria such as Streptococci, Gonoccocci, Menningococci, Diptheria bacillus, and Pneunococci, while it was not effective against “Gram-negative” bacteria such as E. Coli.

Fleming did not pursue his discovery, however, due to the difficulty of isolating pure penicillin.