A Brief History of Microbiology

1886: Theodore Escherich describes a bacterium which The Adven he called “bacterium coli L t of An commune” and which was aying the Foundation tibio later to be called Escherichia tic coli. A strain he isolated in 1920s: Selman s 1886 is added to Waksman and Albert 1928: Alexander Fleming Almwroth Wright the collection 1900: 1915: Isolation of the very Schatz lead a systematic accidentally discovers isolates NCTC 160 Salmonella upon its founding first bacterial strain registered effort to screen soil penicillin. He returns from 1930s: NCTC introduces enterica subsp. enterica (NCTC 86). in the collection. NCTC 1 is bacteria for antimicrobial vacation and notices that a freeze-drying of samples serotype Typhi from the a strain of Shigella flexneri compounds. NCTC later culture plate left lying out to ensure longevity and 1890: German scientist spleen of a typhoid patient recovered from Private Ernst acquires the Streptomyces had become overgrown streamline storage and Robert Koch provides proof of during the Boer War. His Cable, a WWI soldier who griseus strain (NCTC 4523) with staphylococci colonies, shipment. germ theory by injecting pure wartime experiences later died from dysentery. It is from which they isolated except where mold was Our understanding of cultures of the Anthrax bacilli lead him to resistant to penicillin streptomycin. growing. He explores further 1887: Julius Petri invents into mice. persuade the microbiology has evolved and erythromycin after his former assistant the agar-coated glass dish armed forces to st even though it was Merlin Price reminds him, for culturing bacteria; earlier produce 10 million enormously over the last isolated before “That’s how you discovered 1930s: Fritz Kauffman and attempts at culturing involved vaccine doses for the discovery of 1920: NCTC is lysozyme.” Over the next 20 Phillip White co-develop 150 years. Few institutions potato slices WWI troops in antibiotics. established to “provide years, Fleming deposits 16 a scheme for classifying and gelatin. northern France. have witnessed our a trustworthy source of samples with NCTC, salmonellae by serotype. authentic bacteria for including a sample collective progress more use in scientific studies.” of Haemophilus Frederick William influenza isolated closely than the National Andrewes deposits the from his own nose in Collection of Type Cultures first cultures. November 1935. (NCTC). In fact, the collection itself is a record of the many milestones microbiologists have arshalli M ng Scien 1941: Howard Florey and crossed, building on the 1977: Gilbert and Sanger ce fo A r Pub Ernest Chain begin mass T li independently develop c Health production of penicillin discoveries of those who G methods to determine the C with funds from the US CT 1969: Don Brenner and colleagues came before. exact sequence of DNA GT 1947: Edward Tatum and and British governments molecules. A establish DNA hybridization as a more reliable basis for classifying clinical Joshua Lederberg produce the after the bombing of Pearl isolates of Enterobacteriaceae. He 1961: NCTC curator Samuel first gene map ofE. coli K12 Harbor. By D-Day in 1944, NCTC begins a 10- uses the new method to replace Cowan and Kenneth Steel 1949: (NCTC 10538). Despite being enough penicillin has To date, 60% of NCTC’s year effort to characterize every type strains with more representative publish ‘Diagnostic Tables for one of the most intensively been produced to treat all organism in the collection. historic collection now has 1977: CDC researchers Joseph McDade and specimens and identify numerous new the Common Medical Bacteria’ studied organisms in the 20th wounded Allied Forces. Charles C. Shepard isolate Legionella microbial species, including Moellerella in the Journal of Hygiene. century, no one definitively a closed, finished reference pneumophilia (NCTC 11230 and wisconsensis (NCTC 12132), Leminorella Demand is so great the journal knows why it is called “K12”. genome, thanks to PacBio® 11192) as the bacterial pathogen grimontii (NCTC 12152), Enterobacter reprints and distributes them in behind the outbreak of a new asburiae (NCTC 12123), and Citrobacter pamphlet form. The work forms Single Molecule, Real- pulmonary disease at a convention in braakii (NCTC 13630). the basis of Cowan & Steel’s Philadelphia. Manual for the Identification 1953: Pioneering food 1947: NCTC focus shifts from 1942: Florey and Chain Time (SMRT®) Sequencing. of Medical Bacteria, first safety microbiologist a general microbial collection contribute three Bacillus published in 1965 and a bench- Betty Constance Hobbs to bacteria of medical or strains (NCTC 6431, 6432, We are excited to be top staple for years to come. publishes a study establishing veterinary interest. and 6474) thought to Clostridium perfringens as the produce ‘antibacterial their partner in crossing cause of many outbreaks of substances active against food poisoning. She eventually the Staphylococcus,’ this latest milestone on deposits more than 20 NCTC demonstrating the their quest to improve strains of bacteria associated researchers were even with food-borne illness. then seeking human and animal health antibiotics beyond by understanding the The Genom penicillin. microscopic world. ics Era 1981: The European Culture Collections’ 1987: The first automated 2003: Cornell Organization, of which DNA sequencing instrument, University scientists invented by Lloyd Smith, is led by Watt Webb 2011: PacBio ships its first commercial NCTC is a member, is SMRT Sequencing system, introducing established. commercialized by Applied and Harold Craighead Biosystems. publish the first report scientists to the long-read sequencing 2014: NCTC and Wellcome Sanger of using arrays of zero- platform that will ultimately become the gold Institute (WSI) launch a five-year mode waveguides standard for generating complete, closed project to sequence 3,000 bacterial for single-molecule microbial genomes. strains from the collection using PacBio 1982: Future Nobel Prize sequencing. winner Barry Marshall drinks The largest recorded outbreak of foodborne sequencing technology. a culture of the Helicobacter 1995: Craig Venter, Hamilton Smith, Claire hemolytic-uremic syndrome, eventually linked Sanger scientists pylori (NCTC 11638 and Fraser, and colleagues at TIGR elucidate to German-grown sprouts, occurs in Europe. publish the genome 11639) to prove his theory the first complete genome sequence of a The organism responsible, a Shiga toxic E. coli of NCTC 1, generated with SMRT that most microorganism, Haemophilus influenza, and (NCTC 13562). Sequencing, and compare it to other stomach submit the sequence to NCBI. S. flexneri isolates collected in 1954, 2018: NCTC scientists Sarah ulcers are 1984, and 2002. Alexander and Mohammed- caused by Abbas Fazal complete the bacteria. extraction of DNA from more www.pacb.com/microbe than 3000 NCTC species and samples are delivered to WSI for sequencing using PacBio technology. PN: INF103-061919