Émile Pierre-Marie van Ermengem (1851–1932) was a Belgian

bacteriologist A bacteriologist is a microbiologist, or similarly trained professional, in bacteriology -- a subdivision of microbiology that studies bacteria, typically Pathogenic bacteria, pathogenic ones. Bacteriologists are interested in studying and learnin ...

who, in 1895, isolated ''

Clostridium botulinum ''Clostridium botulinum'' is a Gram-positive, rod-shaped, anaerobic, spore-forming, motile bacterium with the ability to produce the neurotoxin botulinum. The botulinum toxin can cause botulism, a severe flaccid paralytic disease in humans an ...

'', the bacterium that causes

botulism Botulism is a rare and potentially fatal illness caused by a toxin produced by the bacterium ''Clostridium botulinum''. The disease begins with weakness, blurred vision, feeling tired, and trouble speaking. This may then be followed by weaknes ...

, from a piece of ham that had poisoned thirty-four people. Reprinted in

Life

Van Ermengem was born in

Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic ...

on 15 August 1851. After studying in Berlin he became a professor at the

University of Ghent Ghent University ( nl, Universiteit Gent, abbreviated as UGent) is a public research university located in Ghent, Belgium. Established before the state of Belgium itself, the university was founded by the Dutch King William I in 1817, when the ...

. He became a corresponding member of the Académie royale de médecine de Belgique in 1887 and a full member in 1902, serving as secretary 1919–1932. He died in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

on 29 September 1932. His sons were the writer

Franz Hellens Franz Hellens, born Frédéric van Ermengem (8 September 1881, in Brussels – 20 January 1972, in Brussels) was a prolific Belgian novelist, poet and critic. Although of Flemish descent, he wrote entirely in French, and lived in Paris from 1947 t ...

and the art critic

François Maret François Maret (; 1893–1985), also known as Frans van Ermengem or Frans Ermengem, was a Belgian poet, painter and art critic. He was the son of the bacteriologist Émile van Ermengem and the younger brother of the writer Franz Hellens. He is ...

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ermengem, Emile Van 1851 births 1932 deaths Belgian bacteriologists Belgian microbiologists