episode_0015

Episode 15. Discovery of Bacteria (5)

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We have secured sufficient evidence.

We’ve grown the bacteria, stained them, and put them under the microscope. Now all that’s left is to show the results to other people.

Professor Klaus looked into the microscope.

“Did you make the microscope yourself?”

“Yes.”

“The purple grain-like things are bacteria, right?”

I nodded.

“So, Professor Asterix, what you’re saying is that these particles are tiny creatures that are the source of disease. Isn’t it possible that they’re just dust?”

I pointed to the petri dish.

“These are the ones we raised by feeding them. They may not seem like much because they are so simple, but they are the most basic form of life. ”

Istina and Professor Klaus were constantly amazed. I understand that it’s amazing, but I wish they’d talk about research a little more.

“So, it’s proven that it’s a living thing. Are you saying that it’s the cause of the disease?”

“Yes.”

“There is still no evidence for that claim?”

There is no experimental evidence.

It seems unlikely that disease-causing microorganisms would grow in a soybean powder nutrient solution. Perhaps making it with animal blood would produce some results?

“Let’s arrange that.”

“The topic of this paper is the discovery of microorganisms using a microscope. It is groundbreaking, but without any clinical use that can be applied immediately, the paper’s impact may be somewhat diminished.”

Professor Klaus thought about it some more.

“More than that, the fact that the experimental content was revealed in class could be a problem. Since it has already been revealed to the public, who could beat them with similar research?”

It’s not that I haven’t thought about that.

Even if the target audience is undergraduate students, it would be good to completely eliminate concerns about the paper being stolen as long as the research content is disclosed to some extent.

but…….

Anyway, these are just papers and experiments plagiarized from the great leaders of history. I didn’t really think much about it. If it works, it works, and if it doesn’t, it doesn’t work.

“Isn’t knowledge everyone’s? I don’t intend to monopolize it. If someone can conduct research and publish it faster than us, that’s a good thing.”

It’s probably impossible anyway. Most of the people who attended my class yesterday were undergraduates. They probably wouldn’t be able to steal someone else’s research.

There are only one or two plagiarized papers in the world, so if you can find someone with the ability to steal those and beat them, it wouldn’t be bad.

Anyway, back to the research.

“What Ms. Istina said is correct. It is a method that opens up a completely new horizon with research results that completely overturn the common sense of the academic world.”

Bacterial culture and microscopy. Gram staining is actually a two-step process, but I can’t quite remember how to do it. Let’s leave that aside.

“I don’t think it’s necessary to make this a long paper. Let’s keep it simple. I’ll summarize it to the extent of the discovery of the microscope and the significance of microparticles.”

“Okay.”

“Professor Asterix. Are you claiming that these particles not only exist, but most of them cause diseases?”

“Infectious diseases, that is, epidemics. These particles are believed to be the cause of decay and epidemics. Alcohol can destroy these particles.”

At least the ones on the surface.

“There’s still no evidence for that?”

“Well, if a suitable patient comes in, we can check for the presence of bacteria in the patient. I don’t have such a patient in front of me yet.”

Microscope is Hooke’s paper, and bacterial staining is Gram’s paper. These are the experiments we have done so far.

To definitively prove that a pathogen causes disease, it would be best to culture the bacteria from a patient’s wound or affected tissue.

Pasteur proved that bacteria are the cause of disease and decay, and Lister emphasized the need for hygiene to reduce bacterial infection.

There’s still a long way to go.

“Let’s organize and write the thesis. It won’t be long, let’s finish it before next Monday.”

Professor Klaus and I looked at Istina as soon as we remembered the deadline on Monday. Istina was dazed for a moment and then flinched.

“Oh, why are you like that?”

“Istina. I’ll give you the manuscript I’ve organized right away, so organize it by Monday and print it out. I’ll also draw the experimental diagram.”

He looked embarrassed.

“I don’t know how to draw?”

“Just try it. If it doesn’t work, don’t do it.”

After all, what graduate students can’t do is something that people can’t do. There’s no reason not to ask graduate students to do anything. Istina nodded with a gloomy expression.

Just hang in there, Istina. When the new graduate students come in, won’t your workload be a little lighter?

****

And then, the following Monday, we published two papers in the Academy’s Journal of the Faculty of Healing, in front of the faculty of the Faculty of Healing.

There were two: ‘Observation of the Microscopic World’ and ‘On the Cultivation and Observation of Biological Microparticles’.

The Academy’s Healing Faculty Spring Conference was a modest event, if anything, for a center of imperial scholarship.

That could be because it takes place over several days.

There were only about a hundred people in attendance, from professors to trainees. There were only a few dozen people sitting and listening to the presentation.

Professor Klaus did not come, saying that the corresponding author or the associate author did not necessarily have to attend the conference. Perhaps he had other things to do.

“Istina. You should present too.”

“Oh, yep.”

“We need to be careful about what we say. Even if what we say is right, if we can’t convince the academic community, it won’t be applied clinically.”

There are more than a few studies that were buried because they were done at the wrong time. A paradigm shift is something that ultimately requires a lot of time and effort.

“Let’s go, Istina.”

****

There is something that people often overlook.

Medieval doctors either didn’t even bother to wash their hands or, for show, performed surgeries with instruments stained with the blood of previous patients.

Of course, it looked ignorant.

There was a perception that the surgery was not easy, and because there was a conscience, the head and torso were rarely operated on.

Anyway, what I’m trying to say is this.

Correcting someone’s common sense is never going to be an easy task. Changing the academic paradigm is also not an easy task.

“Will people know about our research?”

“No, you haven’t even studied for half a semester yet, so why are you complaining? If you don’t understand this time, just keep doing it until you do.”

Istina nodded.

We slowly stood in front of the podium. Dozens of eyes were fixed on me and Istina. I don’t know if these people read the paper.

First, let’s start with the announcement.

“Hello everyone. I am Asterix, the chief healer of the Imperial Court and a professor at the Imperial Academy’s Department of Healing. This is Istina, my graduate student. Thank you for your presence.”

Istina bowed her head.

“You may have seen the abstract of the paper, but I have no doubt that what I will present today will rewrite the history of imperial medicine. There is a lot we do not see.”

There hasn’t been much reaction from the audience yet.

Well, I didn’t even open the PowerPoint. No matter what I say, there will be more people who are asleep. Let me explain first.

“There are many things in the world that we cannot see, just because they are too small. The first paper is about magnifying glasses.”

“You all know that using a magnifying glass or a magnifying glass makes an object appear several times larger. Then, wouldn’t using multiple magnifying glasses make it appear larger by multiplication?”

His expression is like, “What nonsense are you talking about?”

I thought about it for a while.

“Uh… …. Isn’t there something called focus in a lens? If you adjust the focus well, you can make it tens or hundreds of times the original size.”

Everyone’s expressions were still ambiguous.

“We observed the microscopic world in the way I just mentioned. The lattice-like microscopic structures found in plants, water bears, insects, etc. ”

But that wasn’t what was really important.

“We isolated microscopic particles from the patient’s wound. Microscopic particles that replicate themselves like living organisms and cause disease.”

Of course, we’re talking about bacteria.

It was a colony grown on a culture medium mixed with animal blood. The bacteria itself was just ordinary Staphylococcus aureus, but the important thing is that it was isolated from a patient’s wound.

“Our opinion and research results are that these fine particles exist in various places and cause diseases and food spoilage.”

Now, people are starting to pay attention. Even if they just listen to what I say, it’s going to be a loss for them.

****

“Do you have any questions?”

This time the reaction was explosive.

People raised their hands and looked at me. Some looked as if they were going to refute me, some looked as if they were dumbfounded, and some looked as if they were amazed.

“If particles are everywhere, especially on your hands. Professor Asterix, are you against the academic consensus that you don’t need to wash your hands before surgery?”

“What is the evidence that particles are living beings? Is the research reproducible?”

“Are microscopes made by magical means? Are studies using microscopes reproducible? Can you disclose the relevant information?”

I looked at Istina for a moment between questions. What did I say, Istina?