Fred Neufeld
{{short description|German physician}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Fred Neufeld
|image = Fred Neufeld.jpg
|image_size = 140px
||birth_date = {{Birth date|1869|02|17|df=y}}
|birth_place = Danzig
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1945|04|18|1869|02|17|df=y}}
|death_place = Berlin, Germany
|known_for = discovery of pneumococcal types
|occupation = physician, bacteriologist
|nationality = German
}}
Fred (Friedrich) Neufeld (17 February 1869 – 18 April 1945) was a physician and bacteriologist who discovered the pneumococcal types. This discovery led Fred Griffith to show that one pneumococcal type could be transformed into another (Griffith's experiment). Subsequently, Oswald Avery demonstrated that the transforming substance was DNA. All modern molecular biology has evolved from this work.
Early years
Neufeld was the son of a physician. He was musically talented and a gifted pianist. In 1894, Neufeld became assistant to Robert Koch. He worked with Koch on studies of tuberculosis and went to Rhodesia with Koch in 1903 to study rinderpest.{{cite book|last=Lehrer|first=Steven|title=Explorers of the Body|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iwDn7ubDO2kC|publisher=iUniverse, Inc.|location=United States|year=2006|isbn=0-595-40731-5|edition=2nd}}
Neufeld's discoveries
In 1900 Neufeld discovered bile solubility of pneumococci.Neufeld F. Über eine spezifische bakteriolytische Wirkung der Galle. Zeitschrift fur Hygiene Infektionskrankheiten. 1900;34:454-64. Addition of a small amount of ox bile to a pneumococcal culture results in complete destruction of the culture after a short incubation. This unique property became widely used to diagnose pneumococcal infections. Then, using immunological techniques, Neufeld discovered that there were three pneumococcal types. In the presence of type I antiserum type I pneumococci would swell, likewise types II and III in the presence of their specific antisera. Neufeld called this the quellung reaction, after the German word for swelling.Neufeld F. Über die Agglutination der Pneumokokken und über die Theorieen der Agglutination. Zeitschrift fur Hygiene Infektionskrankheiten. 1902;40:54-72.Neufeld F, Händel L. Weitere Untersuchungen über Pneumokokken Heilsera. III Mitteilung. Über Vorkommen und Bedeutung atypischer Varietäten des Pneumokokkus. Arbeit aus dem Kaiserlichen Gesundheitsamte. 1910;34:293-304. The quellung reaction allowed for easy laboratory identification of pneumococcal types.Austrian, Robert. A Brief History of Pneumococcal Vaccines. Review Article. Drugs & Aging. 15 Supplement 1:1-10, 1999 Using Neufeld’s discoveries, Fred Griffith showed that pneumococci could transfer genetic information and transform one type into another.{{cite book|last=Tuomanen|first=Elaine|title=The pneumococcus|publisher=ASM Press|location=United States|year=2004|isbn=1-55581-297-X}} Oswald Avery then found that the transforming substance was DNA. All of modern molecular biology has evolved from this work.
Later life
File:Pneumococcus CDC PHIL 2113.jpg
From 1917 to 1933, Neufeld was director of the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin. He never married and lived with his mother until her death. When the Nazis came to power they immediately demoted Neufeld, although he was Protestant (Mennonite), not Jewish. Neufeld remained on the Institute staff as an "honorary member" (Ehrenmitglied) and continued to publish. In 1939 he was nominated for the Goethe-Medaille für Kunst und Wissenschaft
for his scientific achievements, but did not receive the honour until Feb. 17, 1944, his 75th birthday. Neufeld died in war torn Berlin of “Entkräftung” (wasting).Kleine, F.K. Fred Neufeld. Obituary (in German). Medical Microbiology and Immunology. Volume 127, Numbers 3-4 / June, 1947
References
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Category:Physicians from Gdańsk
Category:Physicians from the Province of Prussia
Category:Medical Microbiology and Immunology editors
Category:Robert Koch Institute people
Category:German civilians killed in World War II
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