Fungus Amongus |
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Ormond MacDougald, Professor, Molecular & Integrative Physiology
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| This striking (but unidentified) fungus grew in broth culture over the Christmas vacation in a research lab at the University of Michigan. Although the broth was sterilized, an airborne fungal spore contaminated the broth through a wayward hole in the foil cap. A fortuitous “experiment” like this led to the identification of penicillin by Dr. Alexander Fleming in 1929. Penicillin is an important antibiotic that is actually produced by a fungus that looks very similar to the fungus in this picture. Fleming’s further observation that the fungus inhibited the growth of bacteria led to the eventual widespread use of penicillin to treat bacterial infections in humans. |
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