History of penicillin History of penicillin The history of penicillin follows a number of observations and discoveries of apparent evidence of antibiotic activity in molds before the modern isolation of the chemical penicillin in 1928. There are anecdotes about ancient societies using molds to treat infections, and in the following centuries many people observed the inhibition of bacterial growth by various molds. However, it is unknown if the species involved were "Penicillium" species or if the antimicrobial substances produced were penicillin. The Scottish physician Alexander Fleming was the first to suggest that a "Penicillium" mold must secrete an antibacterial substance, and the first
History of penicillin to concentrate the active substance involved, which he named penicillin, in 1928. Penicillin was the first modern antibiotic. During the next twelve years Fleming grew, distributed, and studied the original mold, which was determined to be a rare variant of "Penicillium notatum" (now "Penicillium chrysogenum"). Many later scientists were involved in the stabilization and mass production of penicillin and in the search for more productive strains of "Penicillium". Important contributors include Ernst Chain, Howard Florey, Norman Heatley, and Edward Abraham. Shortly after the discovery of penicillin, scientists found that some disease-causing pathogens display antibiotic resistance to penicillin. Research that aims