— On a Monday morning, as he was sorting through Petri dishes of Staphylococci he had left on his laboratory bench before going on vacation, Dr. Alexander Fleming noticed one that had become contaminated with mold. Fungal contamination was not particularly unusual, but what was remarkable was that all of the bacterial colonies immediately surrounding the mold had died. Fleming subsequently identified the mold as belonging to the genus Penicillium and found that it naturally produced a substance that was lethal not only to staphylococci, but to a wide range of bacteria including those responsible for diseases like pneumonia, gonorrhea, meningitis, and scarlet fever. He named the miracle compound “penicillin.” Fleming’s serendipitous discovery marked the beginning of the modern medical era of antibiotics, played a critical role in the Allies’ victory during World War II, and has likely saved more lives than most other medical advances in history. Continue reading Antibiotic resistance: A battle of wits versus natural selection