MY LIFE WITH THE MICROBES

For the more serious scientist, this autobiography of the Nobel-winning microbiologist records a lifework of dedication and discovery- particularly in the field of antibiotics- the term he coined. From a poor, but happy, farm family, Waksman became a teacher at an early age, and in New Brunswick he started his studies in soil microbiology at the Agricultural Station and worked at Rutgers where Dr. Fleming and his associates isolated penicillin. Waksman's particular field was streptomycin and its use in the treatment of tuberculosis and to ""fill in"" when penicillin and sulfa failed. After a brief industrial job in California, he returned to Rutgers and tutored in bacteriology and biochemistry, did further research on the toxicological nature of salvarsan, the first synthetic compound introduced to counteract syphilis but later replaced by other drugs. To date 105 antiobiotics have been isolated, but many have been dropped, and this man's work has been vastly instrumental in their discovery and application..... A book for doctors, research workers, scientists- for libraries, particularly in medical schools, rather than a general market.