October 22, 2013 Volume 3, Issue 2

Infection Control… Timeless III

Dr. Antony Van Leeuwenhoek - The Microscope

About This Series…. Biography: Welcome to the third Edition of Timeless, a historical Antony Leeuwenhoeck was born on October 24, 1632 in Delft, perspective of infection control, Holland. His father and grandfather were basketmakers and his to celebrate Infection Prevention mother was the daughter of a brewer. He had one brother and 5 and Control Week. This year’s sisters. His father died when he was 5 yrs old. At the age of 16, series will highlight some of the he moved to Amsterdam and became a drapery tradesman. His interest in microscopy was no doubt sparked by the use of a technical advances that have magnifying glass to examine threads in the drapery fabrics he impacted on infection control. worked with. He began to hone his glassblowing and lens Enjoy your read. grinding skills to develop better magnifying lenses. By 1660, he  was married with 5 children, and owned a home and successful clothing store in Delft. He was appointed Chamberlain to the Sheriffs of Delft. This salaried position allowed him to devote his time to making lenses, microscopes and discovering the 1. world of microscopy. Over the next several years, he examined a wide variety of things from water, feces, urine, “Animals in the scurf insects to tooth scrapings. He described the morphology of microorganisms such as bacteria, yeast and molds, their physiologic responses to heat, and bacterial grown in of a man’s Teeth are anaerobic environment and other various media. Antony van so many that I believe Leeuwenhoek could not read Latin and never attended a scientific they exceed the meeting or had any contact with a university, but in 1673 he was encouraged by a young physician to submit reports of his findings to number of Men in a the scientific group of the Royal Society of London. Over the next kingdom” several decades, he submitted over 200 letters to the Society

– Antony van Leeuwenhoek describing “animalcules”, often including detailed drawings of his observations. Records of his correspondence with the Society of London show that he changed the spelling of his name 19 times. Despite his lack of formal education, in 1680 he was elected Fellow of the Royal Society and attracted the attention of others curious about the generation of microscopic life, including many scientists “His work was with and nobility who visited his humble home in Delft. small things but his Leeuwenhoeck made many simple microscopes, with a single glory is not small” – biconvex lens mounted on a silver or gold frame. Contrary to the how microscopes operate nowadays, the object was moved with screws or inscription from the glued into focus, rather than moving the lens. During van silver medal 2. Leeuwenhoek’s lifetime he did not sell any microscopes and after his presented to death left 419 lenses, many with the object still glued in place. Leeuwenhoek by the University of Louvain. Legacy: – Plato, 4th century BC

Antony Van Leeuwenhoek had a unique power of observation coupled with a keen sense of scientific curiosity and skilled craftsmanship. His hand-blown and ground lenses were used to build microscopes with up to Public Health Ontario 200-300 times magnification. Central South Infection Control He was able to observe red Network blood cells, sperm, and 56 Governor’s Road single-celled organisms. He Dundas, ON L9H 5G7 observed bacteria of the cocci, 4. Tel: 289 975-9063 Toll-free: 1 866 681-4916 bacilli and spirilla Fax: 905 627-6474 morphologies. His reported observations of microorganisms in

Picture Credits: scrapings from the surfaces of his own teeth represent the first 1. Image source: commons.wikimedia.org documented observation of biofilm. He had a unique power of 2. Image source: commons.wikimedia.org 3. Image source: commons.wikimedia.org 3. observation, and meticulously recorded his findings. He was 4. Image source: commons.wikimedia.org not content to simply note the presence of “animacules”, but

References: delved into the mysteries of the origin of life. Antony van Leeuwenhoek is 1. Donlan RM. Biofilms: Microbial like on surfaces. Emerging Infectious Diseases considered the father of microscopy. [serial on the internet]. 2002. [cited 2013 Jun 27]; 8(9). Available from: http:// europepmc.org/articles/PMC2732559? pdf=render Present Day: 2. Fred EB. Antony van Leeuwenhoek: On the three-hundredth anniversary of his birth. Journal of Bacteriology [serial on the internet]. 1933. [cited 2013 Jun 27]; 25(1); The microscope represents a significant technological advancement impacting the 1-18. [cited 2013 Jun 27] Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/ fields of microbiology, bacteriology and laboratory testing. Cell morphology, PMC533397/pdf/jbacter00821-0004.pdf physiology and media for bacterial growth were all developed by this self-taught 3. History of the microscope [homepage on the Internet]. UK: history-of-the- scientist. Today’s compound light microscopes have a magnifying power of 1,000 to microscope.org; c2010 [cited 2013 Jun 27]. Available from: http://www.history-of- 2,000 and the electron microscope can go up to 1 million times magnification, a the-microscope.org/anton-van- tremendous improvement over the 200 times magnification of van Leewenhoek’s leeuwenhoek-microscope-history.php 4. McCarty DJ. A historical note: Leeuwen- microscopes. Although Antony van Leeuwenhoek was not a formally trained hoek’s description of crystals from a gouty trophus. Arthritis and Rheumatism. 1970; scientist, his careful attention to observation, method and documentation skills are 13 (4). Available from: http:// attributes highly valued by scientists and infection prevention and control onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ art.1780130408/abstract practitioners alike.