Stamen Grigorov is the name that the world remembers for his two critical discoveries, Lactobacillus bulgaricus and the tuberculosis vaccine. He worked in microbiology during the 19th century and made significant contributions to the food industry in the form of yogurt. In fact, many of us enjoy the discovery made by Grigorov without knowing how the staple food of Bulgaria came into the western world.
Stamen Grigorov Biography
Born on 27th October 1878, Stamen Grigorov belongs to Studen Izvor in the Tran Municipality of Pernik Province, Bulgaria. Grigorov completed his secondary schooling in Montpellier, France and completed his doctorate from the Medical University of Geneva in Switzerland. This was the same university where Grigorov discovered Lactobacillus bulgaricus for the first time in 1905. He was the research assistant to the microbiology department director named Leon Massol. Grigorov found that yogurt was made from fermented milk that contained rod-shaped bacteria. To pay homage to his home country, the bacteria was later named Lactobacillus bulgaricus.
One year after his first discovery, Grigorov released a paper in 1906 where he demonstrated how penicillin could be used to treat tuberculosis. A penicillin fungus experiment was conducted by Grigorov and Albert Calmette. Stamen Grigorov’s scientific experiments in-vitro and in-vivo on lab animals and later on human patients found a remarkable healing process that later became an important treatment process to cure tuberculosis. On his 67th birthday, Stamen Grigorov died on 27th October 1945.
Stamen Grigorov’s experiment benefitted Bulgaria economically
In the 1950s, the state-owned yogurt firm patented and promoted a special blend of the yogurt bacteria’s strains and made an official Bulgarian Yogurt. This blend became very famous and was exported on large scale to many countries globally. By using Grigorov’s experiments and bacterial strain to produce yogurt, the country benefited economically from Grigorov’s experiments.
Stamen Grigorov was a pioneer of the in-vitro and in-vivo field
In order to test the feasibility of in-vitro medical operations, Grigorov was one of the first researchers to conduct experiments on laboratory animals. His research progressed from using laboratory animals to humans. With his devoted investigation and sharp intelligent abilities, Stamen Grigorov completed tremendous work on the ground. There were a lot fewer resources available in the period when he did his research. He was not a fan of the cutting-edge tools, innovative materials, and techniques that are being applied in the domain. Science and medical researchers were confined to working by experimentation, drawing on prior knowledge as a foundation, and laboriously investigating and compiling the data in order to draw new findings.
Stamen Grigorov served Bulgarian military during World War I and the Balkan War
Following his significant discoveries, Grigorov received several offers of prominent titles. He made the decision to go back to Bulgaria, where he served his nation in the Balkan War from 1912 to 1913. He was a doctor who participated in the war as a doctor for his nation in the First World War. He assisted in suppressing the cholera outbreak that was afflicting the soldiers at the time. Dr. Stamen Grigorov allegedly received the Red Cross and the Order of Bravery.
The link between Bulgaria’s Yogurt and Bulgarian’s Longevity
A Russian named Ilya Mechnikov studied the discoveries made by Stamen Grigorov and found a link between the length of Bulgarian’s life and the amount of yogurt consumed by them. Bacillusbulgaricus.com stated that Mechinikov studied 37 countries and found that people who lived for more than 100 years are found more in Bulgaria than any other country. The researcher found that yogurt can suppress the proteolytic bacteria that cause aging in the bowel. Mechinikov won the Nobel prize in 1908, and yogurt has been associated with a cure for cancer, as well as harmful bacteria in humans.
Google Doodle celebrated Stamen Grigorov’s 142nd Birth Anniversary on 27th October 2020
Google Doodle celebrated Stamen Grigorov’s 142nd birth anniversary two years back to pay homage to his experiments related to Lactobacillus bulgaricus and the tuberculosis vaccine. According to the official site of Google, “Doodle celebrates the 142nd birthday of Bulgarian physician and microbiologist Dr. Stamen Grigorov, the first scientist to discover the bacterium essential to the fermentation of yogurt. Grigorov also contributed to the development of the world’s first tuberculosis vaccine.”
Dr. Stamen Grigorov’s legacies
- Studen Izvor Museum of Yogurt in his hometown of Studen Izvor.
- Dr. Stamen Grigorov Municipal Hospital in Tran (Trun)
- Postage Stamp in Bulgaria
- Geneva School in Geneva, Switzerland. Established in 1984 where students come to learn Bulgarian Geography, Culture, and Language.
- Grigorov Glacier in Antarctica on Brabant Island in the Palmer Archipelago.
