WAKSMAN, SELMAN ABRAHAM

WAKSMAN, SELMAN ABRAHAM
WAKSMAN, SELMAN ABRAHAM (1888–1973), U.S. microbiologist and Nobel Prize winner. Born in Priluki, Russia, he was taken to the United States as a child. From 1925, he taught at Rutgers University, heading its Institute of Microbiology from 1949. Although Waksman's research interests involved various aspects of soil microbiology, he is best known for his investigations of antibiotics, particularly streptomycin. The term antibiotic, a substance produced by one microorganism that kills other microorganisms, was coined by Waksman. When he began his search for antibiotic substances in the 1930s, he had already many years of experience with a group of fungi known as the actinomycetes, and he was very familiar with their abundance, distribution, taxonomy, and activities. In the course of their work Waksman and his colleagues developed many specialized techniques which were valuable in the cultivation of microbes, as well as the isolation and purification of active antibiotics. Streptothricin, the first antibiotic substance he isolated from an actinomycete, was too toxic for therapeutic use. Returning to a species of fungus that he had first described in 1916, he found a strain that produced a substance possessing antibacterial activity but was less toxic. The fungus, Streptomyces griseus, was grown in submerged culture. The isolation of the new antibiotic, which he named streptomycin, was done by adsorption on charcoal, removing it from the charcoal by treatment with dilute acid, followed by drying and crystallization. Using standardized strains of bacteria, a series of laboratory tests were performed to investigate the bacteriocidal properties of streptomycin. It proved to be effective against a great variety of bacteria, including the tubercle bacillus, and was categorized as a broad-spectrum antibiotic. Waksman and his coworkers began the work of elucidating the chemical structure of streptomycin, but the task was completed by other investigators. Streptomycin, one of the most useful antibiotics to be discovered, was considered a major breakthrough in the area of chemotherapy. Following this work, Waksman and his coworkers continued the search for antibiotics and succeeded in finding several more. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences and in 1952 was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology. His autobiography, My Life with the Microbes, appeared in 1954. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: T. Levitan, The Laureates: Jewish Winners of the Nobel Prize (1960), 164–8; H.B. Woodruff (ed.), Scientific Contributions of Selman A. Waksman; selected articles published in honor of his 80th birthday (1968). (Norman Levin)

Encyclopedia Judaica. 1971.

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  • Waksman,Selman Abraham — Waks·man (wăksʹmən), Selman Abraham. 1888 1973. Russian born American microbiologist. He won a 1952 Nobel Prize for discovering the antibiotic streptomycin. * * * …   Universalium

  • Waksman, Selman (Abraham) — (22 jul. 1888, Priluka, Ucrania, Imperio ruso–16 ago. 1973, Hyannis, Mass., EE.UU.). Bioquímico estadounidense nacido en Ucrania. Se nacionalizó en 1916 y pasó gran parte de su carrera en la Universidad de Rutgers. Después del descubrimiento de… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Waksman, Selman Abraham — ▪ American biochemist born July 22, 1888, Priluka, Ukraine, Russian Empire [now Pryluky, Ukraine] died Aug. 16, 1973, Hyannis, Mass., U.S.  Ukrainian born American biochemist who was one of the world s foremost authorities on soil microbiology.… …   Universalium

  • Waksman , Selman Abraham — (1888–1973) Russian–American biochemist Waksman, who was born at Priluki in Russia, emigrated to America in 1910; he graduated from Rutgers University in 1915 and obtained his American citizenship the following year. He studied for his doctorate… …   Scientists

  • Waksman, Selman (Abraham) — born July 22, 1888, Priluka, Ukraine, Russian Empire died Aug. 16, 1973, Hyannis, Mass., U.S. Ukrainian born U.S. biochemist. He became a U.S. citizen in 1916 and spent most of his career at Rutgers University. After the discovery of penicillin,… …   Universalium

  • Waksman, Selman Abraham — (1888–1973)    US microbiologist and Nobel laureate, 1952. Waksman was taken as a child from Russia to the United States. In 1939 he discovered a bacteria killing agent in a micro organism found in soil. He coined the term ‘antibiotic’ (against… …   Who’s Who in Jewish History after the period of the Old Testament

  • Waksman, Selman Abraham — ► (18881973) Microbiólogo estadounidense. Fue premio Nobel de Medicina y Fisiología en 1952 por sus trabajos sobre los antibióticos y el descubrimiento de la estreptomicina …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Selman Abraham Waksman — Selman Waksman (1953) Nacimiento …   Wikipedia Español

  • Selman Abraham Waksman — Selman Waksman (1953) Selman Abraham Waksman (ukrainisch Зельман Абрахам Ваксман, wiss. Transliteration Zel man Abracham Vaksman; * 8. Julijul./ 20. Juli 1888 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Selman Abraham Waksman — Selman Waksman Selman Waksman (1953) Salman Abraham Waksman, microbiologiste américain d origine russe ashkénaze, est né à Priluka, près de Kiev, le 22 juin 1888. Il est décédé le 16 août 1973. Son père s appelait Jacob Waksman et sa mère, Fradia …   Wikipédia en Français

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