Imagine trying to deal with a pandemic like COVID-19 in a world where microscopic life is unknown. Before the 17th century, people were limited to what they could see with their own eyes. But a Dutch astrologer changed everything.
His name was Antonie van Leeuwenhoek and he lived from 1632 to 1723. Although he had no scientific training, Leeuwenhoek became the greatest lens maker of his time, discovered microscopic life forms, and Today he is known as the “Father of Microbiology”.
Visualizing ‘Animals’ with ‘Small Specsense’
Leeuwenhoek opened the door to a vast world never before seen. J. Verolje/Welcome Collection, Copyright
Leeuwenhoek did not try to identify microorganisms. Instead, he tried to assess the quality of the thread. He How to make a lens A method of heating a thin glass filament to create a tiny sphere. His lenses were so high quality that he could see things that others could not.
This allowed him to train his microscope (literally “small observer”) on new and largely unexpected areas: objects too small to be seen with the naked eye, including organisms. First person to visualize red blood cells, blood flow in capillaries, and sperm.
An illustration taken from a letter sent by Leeuwenhoek in 1683, illustrating the bacteria in the human oral cavity. Huidang2910, Copyright: CC BY-SA
Leeuwenhoek also The first human to see bacteria – And it cannot be overstated how important this discovery was to microbiology and medicine. But because he had no formal education, he was reluctant to publish his findings. Eventually, his friends persuaded him to do so.
He said, “Every time I discover something surprising, it It is my duty to put down on paper what I discover.“So that all ingenious people may know about it.” Driven by curiosity and the joy of discovery, he said, “I never paid attention to those who said this. Why do you put so much effort into it and what’s the use??”
When he reported visualizing “animalcules” (small animals) swimming in a drop of pond water, members of the scientific community questioned his credibility. Verified by trusted religious and scientific institutionsHis paper was published, and in 1680 he was invited to join the Royal Society in London, then the world’s foremost scientific institution.
Leeuwenhoek was not the only microscopist in the world. His contemporary in England Robert Hooke coined the term “cell”. He published “Micrographia,” which described the basic units of life and featured extremely detailed images of insects and other things, and became the first scientific bestseller. However, Hooke was unable to identify bacteria.
Despite Löwenhoek’s power as a lens maker, even he could not see viruses. Viruses are about 1/100th the size of bacteria, too small to be seen with an optical microscope. Because of the physics of light. It can only be magnified thousands of times. The virus was not visualized until 1931. Invention of the electron microscopeIt can be magnified millions of times.
Image of hepatitis virus as seen through an electron microscope. Courtesy of E.H. Cook, Jr./CDC, Associated Press
A vast world you’ve never seen before
Leeuwenhoek and his successors opened up a much larger realm of life: all the bacteria on Earth, for example. More than 1,100 times heavier than a human And they are more numerous than we can imagine. There is fossil evidence. Bacteria were among the first life forms on EarthIt dates back more than 3 billion years, and is thought to be about 1 billion years old on Earth today. 50 billion bacteria (1 followed by 30 zeros).
Some species Bacteria cause diseasesuch as cholera, syphilis, and streptococcal tonsillitis. Others are known as extremophiles.They can survive at temperatures beyond the boiling and freezing points of water, from the upper atmosphere to the deepest parts of the ocean. Also, the number of harmless bacterial cells inside and outside our bodies is Probably more than humans.
Viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, are 100 times more numerous than bacteria. There are more stars on Earth than in the universe.. They are also found everywhere from the upper atmosphere to the deep ocean.
Visualization of human rhinovirus 14, one of several viruses that cause colds. Protein spikes are shown in white for clarity. Thomas Splettstor, Copyright: CC BY-SA
Oddly enough, Viruses probably cannot be classified as living organisms.. They can only replicate by infecting the cells of other organisms, hijacking the cellular system to replicate themselves, sometimes even killing the infected cell.
It is important to remember that microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses do more than cause disease, and many are essential to life. For example: Bacteria synthesize vitamin B12Without it, most organisms would not be able to make DNA.
Likewise, viruses cause diseases like colds, flu, and COVID-19, but they also play a vital role in the transfer of genes between species. It helps increase genetic diversity and promote evolution.. today Researchers use viruses to treat diseases such as cancer..
Scientists’ understanding of microbes has advanced significantly since Leeuwenhoek, including the development of antibiotics against bacteria and vaccines against viruses, including SARS-CoV-2.
But it was Leeuwenhoek who first opened people’s eyes to the vast microscopic realms of life, and his discoveries continue to change the world today.
By Richard GundermanDean of Medicine, Humanities, and Philanthropy at Indiana University. This article was republished from conversation Under Creative Commons License. Read more Original article.
