Lev Aleksandrovich Zilber (russian: link=no, Лев Александрович Зильбер; March 27
Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. March 15">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>
O.S. March 15 1894 – November 10, 1966) was a Soviet
micro-biologist, Virology">virologist
Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, their ...
, and
immunologist; academician of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences">Immunology">immunologist; academician of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences (AMN SSSR; 1945), founder of the Soviet school of virology. The elder brother of the writer
Veniamin Kaverin
Veniamin Aleksandrovich Kaverin (russian: link=no, Вениами́н Алекса́ндрович Каве́рин; Вениами́н А́белевич Зи́льбер (Veniamin Abelevich Zilber); , Pskov – May 2, 1989, Moscow) was a Sovi ...
.
Biography
Zilber was born on March 15
Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. March 27]
1894 in the family of the
kapellmeister
(, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (master)'','' literally "master of the chapel choir" designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term ha ...
Abel Zilber and his wife, née Khana Girshevna (Anna Grigorievna) Desson, pianist and owner of music stores. Place of birth – the village of Medved, Medved
volost,
Novgorod Governorate. His sister Leya (married Elena Aleksandrovna Tynyanova, 1892–1944) is the wife of the writer and literary critic
Yury Tynyanov
Yury Nikolaevich Tynyanov ( rus, Ю́рий Никола́евич Тыня́нов, p=ˈjʉrʲɪj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ tɨˈnʲænəf; October 18, 1894 – December 20, 1943) was a Soviet writer, literary critic, translator, scholar and scre ...
, a classmate of Lev Zilber. His younger brothers:
military doctor
The term military medicine has a number of potential connotations. It may mean:
*A medical specialty, specifically a branch of occupational medicine attending to the medical risks and needs (both preventive and interventional) of sold ...
David Zilber (1897–1967), composer and conductor Alexander Ruchiov (1899–1970) and writer
Veniamin Kaverin
Veniamin Aleksandrovich Kaverin (russian: link=no, Вениами́н Алекса́ндрович Каве́рин; Вениами́н А́белевич Зи́льбер (Veniamin Abelevich Zilber); , Pskov – May 2, 1989, Moscow) was a Sovi ...
(1902–1989).
Career
In 1912, Zilber graduated from the
Pskov
Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...
provincial gymnasium with a
silver medal
A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...
and entered the natural department of the Faculty of physics and mathematics of
St. Petersburg Imperial University. In 1915 he transferred to the medical faculty of
Moscow University
M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...
, having received permission to attend classes at the natural department at the same time and graduated from it in 1919.
Having left in 1919 as a volunteer for the front he served in the
Red Army in various positions from a doctor to the head of the medical unit. He was taken prisoner by the
whites, but successfully escaped. Since 1921, he worked at the Institute of microbiology of the
People's Commissariat for Health in Moscow.
In 1928 he married with
Zinaida Yermolyeva
Zinaida Vissarionovna Yermolyeva (russian: Зинаида Виссарионовна Ермольева) ( – December 2, 1974) was a Soviet microbiologist of Don Cossack origin most notable for independently synthesizing penicillin for the Sovie ...
. The first months after the wedding Zilber and Yermolyeva spent working at the
Pasteur Institute in France and the
Robert Koch Institute
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) is a German federal government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention. It is located in Berlin and Wernigerode. As an upper federal agency, it is subordinate to the Federal ...
in Germany.
In 1929, he was sent by the
People's Commissar for Health N. Semashko to suppress an outbreak of typhoid fever in the city of
Dzerzhinsk near
Nizhny Novgorod.
First arrests
In 1929, he accepted an offer to take the position of director of the
Azerbaijan Institute of microbiology and head of the department of microbiology at the
Medical University in
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
. He led the suppression of an outbreak of
plague
Plague or The Plague may refer to:
Agriculture, fauna, and medicine
*Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis''
* An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural)
* A pandemic caused by such a disease
* A swarm of pes ...
in the villages of
Bulutan and
Hadrut
Hadrut ( hy, Հադրութ, ) is a town in the Khojavend District of Azerbaijan, in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The town had an ethnic Armenian-majority population prior to the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war. Numerous Armenian civilians ...
in Nagorno-Karabakh in 1930. Upon his return to
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
, he was introduced to the
Order of the Red Banner, but was soon arrested on charges of sabotage to infect the population of Azerbaijan with plague. He was released after 4 months (possibly, at the request of
Maxim Gorky, who was approached by the younger brother of Lev Zilber, writer
Veniamin Kaverin
Veniamin Aleksandrovich Kaverin (russian: link=no, Вениами́н Алекса́ндрович Каве́рин; Вениами́н А́белевич Зи́льбер (Veniamin Abelevich Zilber); , Pskov – May 2, 1989, Moscow) was a Sovi ...
, perhaps due to the efforts of his ex-wife
Zinaida Yermolyeva
Zinaida Vissarionovna Yermolyeva (russian: Зинаида Виссарионовна Ермольева) ( – December 2, 1974) was a Soviet microbiologist of Don Cossack origin most notable for independently synthesizing penicillin for the Sovie ...
).
Upon his release, Zilber worked in Moscow heading the department of microbiology at the
Central Institute for the Improvement of Doctors and head of the microbiological department of the State Scientific and Control Institute of the
People's Commissariat for Health of the
RSFSR
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...
named after
Lev Tarasevich.
In 1932, he led the elimination of an outbreak of
smallpox in Kazakhstan
and in 1935 he also married with Valeria Petrovna Kiseleva.
In 1935–1936 he achieved the creation of the Central Virus Laboratory under the People's Commissariat for Health of the RSFSR and the opening of a department of virology at the
Institute of Microbiology of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
In 1937, he led the Far Eastern expedition of the People's Commissariat for Health of the USSR to study an unknown infectious disease of the
central nervous system. During the work of the expedition the nature of the disease –
tick-borne encephalitis
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a viral infectious disease involving the central nervous system. The disease most often manifests as meningitis, encephalitis or meningoencephalitis. Myelitis and spinal paralysis also occurs. In about one third ...
was clarified and methods of dealing with it were proposed.
Immediately upon his return, he was arrested on denunciations of an attempt to infect Moscow with
encephalitis
Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, ...
and concealment of the fact that encephalitis was brought into the
USSR by Japanese saboteurs. In June 1939 he was released. Zilber participated in the struggle for his release. His brother
Kaverin,
Ermolyeva, colleagues on the Far Eastern expedition
A. K. Shubladze,
Mikhail Chumakov,
V. D. Solovyov and many others participated in the struggle for his release.
In 1939, he became the head of the
virology department at the
Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology, which he led until his death in 1966 with a break during the third arrest (1940–1944).
Third arrest
In 1940 Zilber was arrested for the third time. While imprisoned, he served part of his term in camps on the
Pechora river, where in the conditions of the
tundra he received a yeast preparation against
pellagra from the
reindeer moss and saved the lives of hundreds of prisoners who died from complete
vitamin deficiency
Vitamin deficiency is the condition of a long-term lack of a vitamin. When caused by not enough vitamin intake it is classified as a ''primary deficiency'', whereas when due to an underlying disorder such as malabsorption it is called a ''seconda ...
. He received a copyright certificate for the
invention
An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an i ...
, the certificate was recorded in the name of the "
NKVD".
He refused repeated offers to work on bacteriological weapons. Remembering Zilber's ability to get
alcohol
Alcohol most commonly refers to:
* Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom
* Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks
Alcohol may also refer to:
Chemicals
* Ethanol, one of sev ...
from reindeer moss, the authorities sent him to a chemical "
sharashka", where he began
carcinoma
Carcinoma is a malignancy that develops from epithelial cells. Specifically, a carcinoma is a cancer that begins in a tissue that lines the inner or outer surfaces of the body, and that arises from cells originating in the endodermal, mesodermal ...
research.
For
tobacco the prisoners caught mice and rats for Zilber for experiments. In the course of research, he formulated a new concept of the origin of cancerous tumors.
After release
In March 1944, on the eve of Zilber's 50th birthday, he was released thanks to a letter of innocence addressed to
Joseph Stalin and signed by chief surgeon of the
Red Army Nikolai Burdenko
Nikolay Nilovich Burdenko (russian: Николай Нилович Бурденко; – 11 November 1946) was a Russian Empire and Soviet surgeon, the founder of Russian neurosurgery. He was Surgeon-General of the Red Army (1937–1946), ...
, Vice President of the USSR Academy of Sciences
Leon Orbeli
Leon Abgarovich Orbeli ( hy, Լևոն Աբգարի Օրբելի, Levon Abgari Orbeli; russian: Леон Абгарович Орбели, Levon Abgarovich Orbeli; – 9 December 1958) was an Armenian physiologist active in the Russian SFSR ...
, academician
Nikolay Gamaleya
Nikolay Fyodorovich Gamaleya (russian: Никола́й Фёдорович Гамале́я; – 29 March 1949) was a Russian and Soviet physician and scientist who played a pioneering role in microbiology and vaccine research.
Biography
Gamale ...
, biochemist
Vladimir Engelgardt and
Zinaida Yermolyeva
Zinaida Vissarionovna Yermolyeva (russian: Зинаида Виссарионовна Ермольева) ( – December 2, 1974) was a Soviet microbiologist of Don Cossack origin most notable for independently synthesizing penicillin for the Sovie ...
(the creator of Soviet
penicillin
Penicillins (P, PCN or PEN) are a group of β-lactam antibiotics originally obtained from ''Penicillium'' moulds, principally '' P. chrysogenum'' and '' P. rubens''. Most penicillins in clinical use are synthesised by P. chrysogenum using ...
and Zilber's ex-wife), who was the initiator of the appeal along with his other colleagues and students.
In the summer of 1945, he found and took his family to the
USSR – his wife, wife's sister and two sons who survived in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
work camps, where they spent 3.5 years. In the same year, he was elected an
academician of the newly created
USSR Academy of Medical Sciences, appointed scientific director of the Institute of virology of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences and headed the Department of
virology and
tumor immunology of the Institute of
epidemiology,
microbiology
Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, prot ...
and
infectious diseases
An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...
of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences, where he worked all subsequent years.
He was occupied with basing and elaborating a viral theory of the origin of cancer. Zilber received the
State Prize of the USSR in 1946; in 1967 he was posthumously awarded the State Prize of the USSR for discovering the pathogenicity of the virus of
Rous sarcoma of
fowl for other classes of animals (cycle of works, 1957–66). He was awarded the
Order of Lenin, the
Order of the Red Banner of Labor and medals.
In 1958 he participated in the 7th International Cancer Congress in London.
In 1959–1965 he participates in the
WHO working group on cancer, in the work of international symposiums and conferences on the problems on oncology in
Berlin,
Libice nad Cidlinou
Libice nad Cidlinou (german: Libitz an der Cidlina) is a municipality and village in Nymburk District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,200 inhabitants. It is one of the oldest settlements in Bohemia.
Geography
...
, London,
Bratislava
Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...
,
Warsaw,
Turin, Prague.
In 1965 he is was an organizer and participant of the International Symposium on Cancer Immunology in
Sukhumi.
On November 10, 1966, Lev Zilber died suddenly in his office at the
Gamaleya Research Institute
The Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology,russian: Национальный исследовательский центр эпидемиологии и микробиологии имени почётного академ ...
and was buried at the
Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist ...
.
Family
Zilber's children subsequently became famous scientists: Lev Lvovich Kiselev (1936–2008) – molecular biologist, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and Fedor Lvovich Kiselev (1940–2016) – molecular biologist, specialist in
carcinogenesis, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences.
Brother of Lev Zilber – David Alexandrovich (Abelevich) Zilber (1897–1967),
hygienist
Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
and head of the department of general and military hygiene, dean of the medical and preventive faculty of the
Perm State Medical Institute, author of the book Pharmacy Hygiene (1962), a textbook for pharmaceutical faculties "Hygiene" (1970).
The wife of his brother Alexander (Ekaterina Ivanovna Zilber, 1904–1963) in her second marriage was married to the playwright
Evgeny Schwartz.
Scientific discoveries
Lev Zilber is the author of the scientific discovery "New properties of the pathogenicity of tumor viruses", which is listed in the
State Register of Discoveries of the USSR.
In 1967, for the discovery of the
pathogenicity of the
Rous sarcoma virus for other classes of animals he was posthumously awarded the
State Prize of the USSR.
He is also the author of more than 300 scientific articles published in domestic and foreign journals, as well as popular science articles and essays.
Member of the associations of oncologists of US, France and
Belgium, member of the
Royal Society of Medicine, honorary member of the
New York Academy of Sciences, organizer and chairman of the committee on virology and cancer immunology at the
Union for International Cancer Control
The Union for International Cancer Control (previously named International Union Against Cancer) or UICC is a non-governmental organisation with some 1,180 member organisations in more than 170 countries.
UICC was founded in 1933 and is based i ...
,
WHO expert in immunology and virology.
Awards
* Medal "For Merit to Science and Humanity" of the
Czech Academy of Sciences.
* Medal of the Czechoslovak Medical Society named after
Jan Purkyně.
* The
order of Lenin.
* The
order of the Red Banner of Labour.
Bibliography
* "Paraimmunity". M. 1928
* "Immunity". M.4 l. 1937. Jointly with V. A. Lyubarsky
* "Epidemic
encephalitis
Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, ...
". M. 1945.
* "Viral theory of the origin of malignant tumors". M. 1946.
* Fundamentals of immunity. M.1948.
* "Teaching about viruses: (General virology)". M.1956.
* "Fundamentals of immunology" M. 1958.
* "Bazel immunology. Bucuresti". 1959. In
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
**Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
**Romanian cuisine, traditional ...
.
* "Virology and Immunology of cancer". M., 1962. Jointly. with
G. I. Abelev.
Posthumous publications
* "Virus-genetic theory of the origin of tumors". M., Science, 1968.
* "The virology and immunology of cancer". L., 1968. With G.I. Abelev.
* "Selected Works: Bacteria, Viruses, Cancer, Immunity". L., from Medicine, 1971.
* "Evolution of the virus-genetic theory of tumors". M., Science, 1975. Jointly with I.S. Irlin and F. L. Kiselev.
See also
*
Microbiology
Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, prot ...
*
Veniamin Kaverin
Veniamin Aleksandrovich Kaverin (russian: link=no, Вениами́н Алекса́ндрович Каве́рин; Вениами́н А́белевич Зи́льбер (Veniamin Abelevich Zilber); , Pskov – May 2, 1989, Moscow) was a Sovi ...
References
Sources
* Kiselev, L. and Levina E. S. Lev Aleksandrovich Zilber (1894–1966): life in science. Science, 2004. — 698 p. (Scientific and biographical literature). ISBN 5-02-032751-4.
External links
Death bypasses the backyard of scienceZil’ber, Lev AleksandrovichЗильбер Лев Александрович (1894)– Открытый список (ru.openlist.wiki)
Lev Zilber – creator of national school medical virologistsZilber Lev Alexandrovich. From the lecture: on the viral theory of cancer– audio, read in 1963
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zilber, Lev
1894 births
1966 deaths
Recipients of the Stalin Prize
Recipients of the USSR State Prize
Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour
Soviet physicians
Soviet virologists
Academicians of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences
Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery
20th-century physicians
20th-century biologists
Recipients of the Order of Lenin
Soviet microbiologists
Soviet immunologists