History of Medicine: Part 4: Micro-biology

You're a doctor in the middle ages, what causes disease? What defends you from disease? 

Before Micro-Biology

In 1590, a father and son Eyeglass makers in Netherlands made lenses that magnified 9 times. They failed to use it outside their business needs.

A few years later, an Englishman used their invention for the first time to look at things close up. He could analyze the structure of objects such as feathers and leaves. He discovered cells and named them so because they looked like a grid of prison cells or monastery cells. He drew pictures of the strange shapes the microscope uncovered. 

Micro-Biology Invented

Finally, in 1674, Dutchman, Anthony Van Leeuwenhoek  had a eager curiosity and a skill at making glass lenses. He built a strange looking flat metal instrument with a hole the size of a grain of rice. It bent light and magnified light so that things would look bigger. The smaller the hole the increase in magnification. 

He had improved upon the earlier microscope and instead of zooming in 9 times he could zoom in 270 times.

https://youtu.be/y4B3kl9Rvrs

https://youtu.be/BN2-n04CCcI

When he looked into the glass he discovered a whole new world. He was the first human in existence to see the microscopic invisible life that makes up all living matter. He was amazed by what he saw and called the creatures 'Animalcules'.

“The 31th of May, I perceived in the same water more of those Animals, as also some that were somewhat bigger. And I imagine, that [ten hundred thousand] of these little Creatures do not equal an ordinary grain of Sand in bigness: And comparing them with a Cheese-mite (which may be seen to move with the naked eye) I make the proportion of one of these small Water-creatures to a Cheese-mite, to be like that of a Bee to a Horse: For, the circumference of one of these little Animals in water, is not so big as the thickness of a hair in a Cheese-mite.”

These are his diagrams:


People were in disbelief but the discovery was easily demonstrated by just looking into his new invention. He was the first person to view most of these lifeforms and it was crazy to think that these tiny animals existed and nobody ever knew it.

Scientists discovered that all life has cells, both plants, animals and humans. It was correctly suggested that these cells worked as little factories, each with a specific job to do. 

Conclusion 

There are unknown, natural explanations in life. 

Connection to disease yet unknown 

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