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
Penicillin "Penicillium" mould. Fleming asked C. J. La Touche to help identify the mould, which he incorrectly identified as "Penicillium rubrum" (later corrected by Charles Thom). He expressed initial optimism that penicillin would be a useful disinfectant, because of its high potency and minimal toxicity in comparison to antiseptics of the day, and noted its laboratory value in the isolation of "Bacillus influenzae" (now called "Haemophilus influenzae"). Fleming was a famously poor communicator and orator, which meant his findings were not initially given much attention. He was unable to convince a chemist to help him extract and stabilize the antibacterial compound