Louis Pasteur

Father of microbiology who revolutionized medicine with germ theory and vaccination

Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) fundamentally transformed medical science through his germ theory of disease, disproving spontaneous generation myths. His innovations saved millions via:

• Rabies vaccine development (1885)
• Pasteurization process for food safety
• Silkworm disease prevention saving France's silk industry

Pasteur's ‘Études sur la Bière’ (1876) laid groundwork for modern microbiology while his public demonstrations of vaccination built public trust in immunization. The Institut Pasteur, founded in 1887, continues leading infectious disease research.

Key impacts:

• Infant mortality reduction through sterilization protocols
• Anthrax/cholera vaccine development
• Establishment of sterile surgical techniques