Alexander Fleming

Awarded for

The discovery of penicillin and its cure for many infectious diseases

Shared with: Ernst Chain, Howard Florey

The story behind the prize

Fleming noticed that a mould (Penicillium) on a culture plate killed bacteria, but he could not produce penicillin in useful amounts. In 1940 Florey and Chain at Oxford purified it and showed it cured infections; mass production during the Second World War saved many lives.

About

Scottish bacteriologist who noticed in 1928 that a mould killed bacteria in a culture dish at St Mary's Hospital, London.

Exam facts

• Penicillin was the first widely used antibiotic