Friedrich August Johannes Loeffler (; 24 June 18529 April 1915) was a German

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 ...

at the

University of Greifswald The University of Greifswald (; ), formerly known as Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Founded in 1456, it is one of th ...

Biography

He obtained his

M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

degree from the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

in 1874. He worked with

Robert Koch Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch ( ; ; 11 December 1843 – 27 May 1910) was a German physician and microbiologist. As the discoverer of the specific causative agents of deadly infectious diseases including tuberculosis, cholera and anthrax, he i ...

from 1879 to 1884 as an assistant in the Imperial Health Office in Berlin. In 1884, he became staff physician at the Friedrich Wilhelm Institute in Berlin, and four years later became professor at the University of Greifswald. His development of original methods of

staining Staining is a technique used to enhance contrast in samples, generally at the Microscope, microscopic level. Stains and dyes are frequently used in histology (microscopic study of biological tissue (biology), tissues), in cytology (microscopic ...

rendered an important and lasting service to bacteriology. Early in his career, he began a study of

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

diseases. Among his discoveries was the organism causing

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...

(''

Corynebacterium diphtheriae ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae'' is a Gram-positive pathogenic bacterium that causes diphtheria. It is also known as the Klebs–Löffler bacillus because it was discovered in 1884 by German bacteriologists Edwin Klebs (1834–1912) and Friedrich ...

'') and the cause of

foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious disease, infectious and sometimes fatal virus (biology), viral disease that primarily affects even-toed ungulates, including domestic and wild Bovidae, bovids. The vir ...

( Aphthovirus). His description of the diphtheria bacillus, published in 1884, was the originating cause of an antitoxin treatment. He also created Löffler's serum, a coagulated blood serum used for the detection of the bacteria. In 1887, he founded the '' Centralblatt für Bakteriologie und Parasitenkunde''. The Friedrich Loeffler Institute on the Isle of Riems near

Greifswald Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin and Neubrandenburg. In 2021 it surpa ...

, as well as th
Friedrich Loeffler Institute of Medical Microbiology
at the Greifswald Medical School of the

, have been named in his honor.

Selected publications

* with

and Georg Theodor August Gaffky: ''Ueber die Verwerthbarkeit heißer Wasserdämpfe zu Desinfectionszwecken.'' (On the effectiveness of hot water vapors for purposes of disinfection) In: ''Mitteilungen aus dem Kaiserlichen Gesundheitsamte.'' 1, 1881, pp. 322–340. * ''Vorlesungen über die geschichtliche Entwicklung der Lehre von den Bakterien.'' (Lectures on the historical development of the theory of bacteria) Leipzig 1887. * with Paul Frosch: ''Summarische Bericht über die Ergebnisse der Untersuchungen der Kommission zur Erforschung der Maul- und Klauenseuche bei dem Institut für Infektionskrankheiten in Berlin.'' (Summary report on the results of the investigations by the Commission for Research into Foot and Mouth Disease at the Institute for Infectious Diseases in Berlin) In: ''Centralblatt für Bakteriologie und Parasitenkunde.'' volume 22, 1897, pp. 257–259 (part 1), and volume 23, 1898, pp. 371–391 (part 2). * ''Zur Immunitätsfrage.'' (On the question of immunity) In: ''Mitteilungen aus dem Kaiserlichen Gesundheitsamte.'' 1, 1882, pp. 134–187. * ''Untersuchungen über die Bedeutung der Mikroorganismen für die Entstehung der Diphtherie beim Menschen, bei der Taube und beim Kalbe.'' (Investigations into the importance of microorganisms for the development of diphtheria in humans, pigeons and calves) In: ''Mitteilungen aus dem Kaiserlichen Gesundheitsamte.'' 2, 1884, pp. 421–499.

Notes

References

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External links

www.fli.bund.de
erman Federal Research Institute for Animal Health {{DEFAULTSORT:Loeffler, Friedrich August Johannes 1852 births 1915 deaths German microbiologists Academic staff of the University of Greifswald People from Frankfurt (Oder) Scientists from the Province of Brandenburg Diphtheria Scientists from the Kingdom of Prussia