Robert Koch

Robert Koch was a German physician and one of the founders of bacteriology and microbiology. He was born on December 11, 1843, in Clausthal, Germany. He studied natural science and medicine at the University of Göttingen and graduated in 1866. He worked as a district medical officer in Wollstein, where he developed his interest in microbiology and infectious diseases. He used his own microscope and laboratory to conduct experiments on anthrax, a deadly disease that affected cattle and humans. He discovered that anthrax was caused by a specific bacterium, Bacillus anthracis, which he isolated and cultured in 1876. This was the first time that a microorganism was proven to be the cause of a disease, and it marked the birth of modern bacteriology. Koch also formulated four criteria, known as Koch's postulates, to establish the causal relationship between a microbe and a disease. In 1880, Koch was appointed as a government advisor at the Imperial Health Office in Berlin. He continued his research on infectious diseases and discovered the bacteria that cause tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) in 1882 and cholera (Vibrio cholerae) in 1883. He also developed new techniques and methods for microbiological research, such as staining, culturing, and inoculating bacteria. He also invented the Petri dish, a glass plate that allowed bacteria to grow on solid media. In 1885, Koch became the director of the newly established Institute of Hygiene at the University of Berlin and a professor of hygiene. He also founded the Royal Prussian Institute for Infectious Diseases (later renamed Robert Koch Institute) in 1891, where he conducted research on various diseases such as malaria, plague, typhoid fever, leprosy, and sleeping sickness. He traveled extensively to different parts of the world to study epidemics and to advise local authorities on public health measures. In 1890, Koch announced that he had discovered a substance called tuberculin, which he claimed could cure tuberculosis. However, tuberculin turned out to be ineffective as a treatment and only useful as a diagnostic tool. This caused a major controversy and damaged Koch's reputation. Nevertheless, he continued his work on tuberculosis and other diseases until his death. Koch received many honors and awards for his contributions to science and medicine. He was elected to several academies and societies, such as the Royal Society of London, the French Academy of Sciences, and the Prussian Academy of Sciences. He received honorary degrees from several universities, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburgh, and Bologna. He was also knighted by several monarchs, such as Emperor Wilhelm I of Germany, King Umberto I of Italy, and King Oscar II of Sweden. He received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1905 for his discoveries in regard to tuberculosis. Koch married twice in his life. His first wife was Emma Adolfine Josephine Fraatz, whom he married in 1867. They had four children: Gertrud, Hedwig, Hermann, and Mathilde. They divorced in 1893, after Koch had an affair with Hedwig Freiberg, his assistant and later second wife. Koch married Hedwig in 1893 and remained with her until his death. He died of heart failure on May 27, 1910, in Baden-Baden, Germany. He was buried in the Invalidenfriedhof Cemetery in Berlin.