Smallpox is one of the oldest and most dangerous diseases. People who contracted this disease died. The death toll was not in the thousands, but in the millions. The course of the disease is very severe, the patient suffers from fever, his body is covered with purulent blisters. Those who were lucky enough to survive had a hard time: many lost their sight, scars covered the body. Doctor Edward Jenner became the man who saved the world from this disease. He was the first to suggest vaccination.
Edward Jenner. Short biography
In May 1749 in England, in the town of Berkeley, a 3rd child was born to a priest named Jenner, he was given the name Edward. The young man had no desire to follow in his father's footsteps and be a clergyman. Therefore, from the age of 12, he began to study medicine, studied to be a surgeon.
After a while, he began to study human anatomy and began to practice in the hospital.
In 1770, the young man moved to London, where he was able to complete his medical education. He worked under the guidance of a famous surgeon and anatomist, who helped him brilliantly master all the intricacies of surgery. The young man was interested not only in medicine, but also in natural science and naturalistics.
Edward Jenner in 1792 receiveda medical degree from Saint Andrew's University.
At the age of 32, he was already a competent surgeon. His greatest achievement is the invention of a vaccine that creates immunity to the smallpox disease.
At the same time, it cannot be said that he invented the vaccination itself, since the practice of inoculating smallpox from a sick person to a he althy one was before that. The procedure was called "variolation", it was not always successful: often people became seriously ill after variolation. Edward himself was vaccinated in this way as a child and suffered for a long time from the consequences.
Aroused in him an interest to work in this direction by the primitive belief of uneducated people that if he had cowpox, then the disease that affects people is no longer terrible.
He experimentally, based on his intuition, proved that the peasants were not wrong. The work absorbed him, he devoted all his time to research.
In 1796, Edward Jenner, whose photo is presented in the article, inoculated an eight-year-old boy with a substance that he took from cowpox pustules.
The experiment was successful, the scientist continued his work.
The scientist died in 1823.
Global recognition
The scientist scrupulously examined the results of his experiments and later presented them in a pamphlet that was published in 1798. After a while, 5 more papers were written on the topic of vaccination. The purpose of the scientist's work was to spread knowledge about vaccination and teach the technique of its implementation.
Great dealscientist-physician received worldwide recognition. He became an honorary member of many scientific societies in Europe.
In 1840, variolation was banned in Great Britain. In 1853, vaccination with cowpox became mandatory for everyone.
Honorary positions
In 1803, the Smallpox Vaccination Institute, also called the Jenner Institute and the Royal Jenner Society, was founded. For his services to the world, Edward Jenner was appointed the first head of the institute. This position was his for life.
In 1806, the scientist received an award from the government - 10 thousand sterling, in 1808 another one, which was equal to 20 thousand sterling.
In 1813, Jenner was awarded the degree of Doctor of Medicine, this happened at Oxford. The scientist was named an honorary citizen of London, he was awarded a diploma adorned with diamonds.
The Russian Empress Maria Feodorovna, who at that time headed the Office of Empress Maria, which was the patron of all scientific, medical and medical institutions, sent Jenner a letter of thanks and a precious ring.
In honor of the great scientist of that time, a medal was knocked out, it had the inscription "Jenner" on it.
The essence of the scientist's experiment
Edward Anthony Jenner hesitated for a long time before testing his theory. He could not conduct the experiment on himself, since in childhood he had been ill with smallpox after an unsuccessful variolation.
The scientist was constantly tormented by doubts, enoughwhether he is confident in his theory to risk someone's life.
When the peasant woman Nelms fell ill with cowpox, blisters appeared on the skin of her hands. Jenner took a chance and instilled the contents of one vial into eight-year-old James Phipps. He took a big risk, because the fact that the boy had cowpox was not enough. To confirm the theory, it was also necessary to infect him with smallpox.
Edward understood that if the boy died, he would not live either.
After the child recovered from cowpox, the scientist injected him with human pox. Despite the fact that incisions were made on both hands of the patient and a cloth with poison was carefully rubbed, there was no reaction. This meant that the experiment was successful: thanks to Jenner, Phipps became immune to smallpox, which is one of the most serious diseases. Although as a child he did not realize the gravity and responsibility of the situation.
The scientist became very attached to James, he loved him like his own son. On the day of the 20th anniversary of the publication of information about the experiment, the scientist gave Phipps a house with a garden in which he planted many flowers.
Origin of the name "vaccination"
The vaccine created by the scientist was called vaccination, as "vacca" in Latin means "cow". The term has become so firmly established in everyday life that today any vaccination that is performed for preventive purposes is called this word. Literally, it can be translated as "corovization", but this does not mean that the vaccine is prepared usingantibodies from that animal. In the case of rabies, for example, it is prepared from the brain of an infected rabbit. And in the case of typhus, from the lung tissue of mice.
Jenner's opponents
Despite all the greatness of the discovery, it was just the beginning of a thorny path. The scientist had to endure misunderstanding, persecution. Even contemporary scientists did not understand him and turned to the scientist with a request not to compromise his scientific reputation. Even when he was at the beginning of his journey, he often shared his thoughts with colleagues, as he was a sociable person. But no one shared his interests.
The book, which showed the results of research over the last 25 years of Jenner's life, he published at his own expense.
Edward Jenner and his followers were not immediately well received, after he published his book, he had to endure a lot of barbs in his address. The main argument of the opponents of vaccination was that in this way they go against the will of God. Newspapers ran cartoons of people who were vaccinated growing horns and fur.
But the disease was coming and more and more people were rushing to try Jenner's way of keeping it out.
At the end of the 18th century, vaccination was used in the English navy and army.
Napoleon Bonaparte ordered all soldiers of the French troops to be vaccinated. In Sicily, where he arrived with the vaccine, the people were so happy to be saved from the disease that they staged a religious procession.
Method of prevention. English doctor Edward Jenner
Smallpox is one of the most dangerous diseases. Along with it there is yellow fever, plague, cholera. The virus is transmitted by airborne droplets, through objects. It penetrates the epithelium, because of this, bubbles form on the skin. The patient's immunity decreases, so the suppuration of the vesicles begins, which turn into purulent wounds. If the patient survives, then there will be scars in place of the abscesses.
Edward Jenner is the founder of smallpox vaccination, the one who made it possible to protect oneself from the threat of getting sick. Thanks to the work of a scientist, smallpox became the first disease to be defeated through vaccination.
1977 is the last case of smallpox. WHO in May 1980 proclaimed victory over the disease throughout the world. To date, the smallpox virus has remained only in heavily guarded laboratories.
The smallpox virus is protected from terrorists. If he is kidnapped, the consequences will be dire, as he is not covered by antibiotics, and vaccinations have not been carried out for a long time.
Monument to the Doctor
1/6 of all sick people died from smallpox, if this case concerned young children, then the mortality rate was 1/3. Therefore, gratitude to the scientist was indescribable.
Edward Jenner, whose biography is known to many today, is considered the father of immunology. In honor of him in Kensington Gardens in a picturesque corner that wearsthe name "Italian gardens", there is a monument. It was staged in 1862. A sign that tells about the merits of a scientist was embedded in the sidewalk in 1996.
Many now do not realize the full significance of the scientist's discovery. According to experts, this man saved so many human lives like no other.
Streets, hospital departments, towns and villages are named after the scientist. A museum has been opened in the house where he used to work.
William Calder Marshall worked on the monument to the scientist. It was originally located in Trafalgar Square, but four years later it was moved to the park due to protests from people opposed to vaccinations.
To date, doctors and scientists have organized a campaign that is trying to return the monument to the square. According to experts, people who protest against vaccinations simply do not know the full horror of diseases such as smallpox.
Private life
The scientist married in 1788, bought an estate in Berkeley. His wife was in poor he alth, so the family spent the summer at Cheltenham Spa. The doctor had a lot of practice. He had 3 children.
Other discoveries of the scientist
Most of his life, the scientist devoted to the development of a vaccine against smallpox. Despite this, he also had enough time to deal with other illnesses. He owns the discovery that angina pectoris is a disease that affects the coronary arteries. The blood supply to the heart muscle depends on the coronary arteries.
