DNA used to resolve murders in the UK – World first
On Jan. 23, 1988, Colin Pitchfork was convicted of murdering two girls in 1983 and 1986 in Narborough,…
First detailed description of the rate of mutation in humans at the DNA level reported at University of Leicester
In 1988, the first detailed description of the rate of mutation in humans at the DNA level was…
DNA fingerprinting discovered at University of Leicester first used to resolve disputed immigration
In 1985, DNA fingerprinting was first used to resolve a disputed immigration case that confirmed the identity of…
Alec Jefferies and technician Vicky Wilson discovered minisatellites leading to the development of genetic fingerprinting
On Sept. 10, 1984, geneticist Alec Jeffreys, and technician Vicky Wilson at the University of Leicester in England…
The World Heath Organization announced that “smallpox has been eradicated from the world”
On May 8, 1980, members of the World Heath Organization (WHO) in Geneva announced that “smallpox had been…
Allan Cormack of Tufts University and Godfrey Hounsfield of EMI Laboratories were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology
In 1979, South African-born physicist Allan Cormack of Tufts University and British engineer Godfrey Hounsfield of EMI Laboratories…
The first test-tube baby was born in the United Kingdom
On Jul. 25, 1978, the first test-tube baby was born in the United Kingdom. Louise Joy Brown is…
Ontario researchers demonstrated that Aspirin can prevent strokes
On Jul. 13, 1978, Ontario researchers published the results of a study led by Dr. Henry Barnett that…
The last naturally occurring case of smallpox in the world was diagnosed in Somalia
On Oct. 30, 1977, Ali Maow Maalin, a hospital cook in Merca, Somalia, was diagnosed with smallpox by…
Insulin resistance receptors was discovered
On Apr. 1, 1976, physician and scientist C. Ronald Kahn from Harvard University announced he had discovered alterations…
CDC disease detectives investigated outbreaks of hemorrhagic fever in Zaire and Sudan, later named Ebola
In 1976, patients began presenting at a rural hospital in northwest Democratic Republic of Congo (then referred to…
Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes and the Triple Crown in record setting time
On Jun. 9, 1973 Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths and a time of 2:24 flat,…
Secretariat won the Preakness Stakes in record setting time
On May 19, 1973 Secretariat won the Preakness Stakes in a record setting time of 1:53, a stakes…
Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby in record setting time
On May 5, 1973 Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby in a record setting time of 1:59 2/5, a…
Senator Norris Cotton secured a second federal grant of $500,000 to support cancer research at Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
In 1973, Senator Norris Cotton secured a second federal grant of $500,000 to support cancer research at Geisel…
Senator Norris Cotton secured a $3 million federal grant to build rural New England’s first regional cancer center
In 1970, Senator Norris Cotton secured a $3 million federal grant to build rural New England’s first regional…
The Priestley Medal was awarded to Peter Debije
In 1963, the American Chemical Society awarded the Priestley Medal to Peter Debije “to recognize distinguished services to…
Artificial insemination of livestock was accomplished using frozen semen
In 1951, researchers Christopher Polge and Lionel Edward Aston Rowson, who worked at the Animal Research Center in…
Scientists discovered how to purify and preserve penicillin
In 1940, Howard Florey, Ernst Chain and others in England discover how to purify and preserve penicillin. The…
Agriculture | Biotechnology | Diagnostics | Infectious Disease | Life Science History | USDA | Veterinary
New World screwworm migrated to Southeast U.S.
In 1933, the New World Screwworm (NWS) was first documented as a significant problem in the Southeast following…
The Priestley Medal was established by the American Chemical Society
In 1922, the Priestley Medal, named for Joseph Priestley, was awarded for first time by the American Chemical…
The first modern sewage plant, designed to treat sewage with bacteria, opens in Manchester, England
In 1914, the first modern sewage plant, designed to treat sewage with bacteria, opened in Manchester, England. There…
Vampire panic caused by tuberculosis
On Jan. 27, 1896, the Boston Globe published a story on superstitious beliefs in rural Rhode Island that…
Typhoid vaccines were first developed
In 1896, Almroth Edward Wright, Richard Pfeiffer and Wilhelm Kolle developed the first typhoid vaccine. It was a…
Francis Galton coined the term eugenics
On May 16, 1883, Francis Galton introduced the term eugenics that suggested humans can be improved by selective…
Charles Darwin, an English naturalist, proposed theory of sexual selection
In 1871, Charles Darwin published his second book “The Descent of Man” in which Darwin addresses the debate…
Hemileia vastatrix, a microbial disease deadly to coffee trees, wipes out the coffee industry in Ceylon
In 1869, hemileia vastatrix, a microbial disease deadly to coffee trees, wipes out the coffee industry in the…
Rebecca Lee Crumpler became the first African American woman in the U.S. to earn an M.D. degree
In 1864, Rebecca Lee Crumpler graduated from the New England Female Medical College and becomes the first black…
British naturalist Charles Darwin published “On the Origin of Species” which explained the theory of evolution
On Nov. 24, 1859, British naturalist Charles Darwin published “On the Origin of Species’ which explained the theory…
Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace announced co-discovery to Linnean Society
On Jul. 1, 1858, British naturalists Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace planned to jointly present at the…