Antoine Béchamp
Antoine Béchamp | |
|---|---|
 Antoine Béchamp | |
| Born | October 16, 1816 Bassing, Moselle, France |
| Died | April 15, 1908 (aged 91) Paris, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Known for | Identifying parasites in silkworm diseases |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biology |
Pierre Jacques Antoine Béchamp (October 16, 1816 – April 15, 1908) was a French chemist and biologist best known as a competitor and antagonist of Louis Pasteur.[1] Béchamp did pioneering work in industrial chemistry, developing an efficient process to produce aniline dye which was central to the development of the synthetic dye industry. He also developed p-aminophenylarsonate, an organic arsenic compound used to treat parasitic diseases.[2]
Béchamp's later life was consumed by a bitter and protracted dispute with Louis Pasteur. Initially, the dispute centered on credit for the discovery of fermentation and later grew to encompass competing visions of germ theory and accusations of plagiarism.[1] Béchamp believed that a form of life called "microzymes" were responsible for disease, and argued that bacteria were not the cause of illness, but the result of it.[1] Pasteur's vision of germ theory became widely accepted by scientists and Béchamp sank into obscurity. On his death in 1908 ("an event ignored in France"), a brief obituary in the British Medical Journal noted that Béchamp's name was "associated with bygone controversies as to priority which it would be unprofitable to recall."[3]
Béchamp's ideas were rejected by the scientific community in the late 19th century, as it became clear that bacteria in fact caused disease and were not the result of it. However, Béchamp's work continues to be promoted by a small fringe of alternative medicine proponents, who dismiss Pasteur's germ theory and argue that Béchamp's ideas were unjustly ignored.[1][2]
Life and career
Béchamp was born in Bassing, France in 1816. He lived in Bucharest, Romania from the ages of 7 to 18 with an uncle who worked in the French ambassador's office. He was educated at the University of Strasbourg, receiving a doctor of science degree in 1853 and doctor of medicine in 1856, and ran a pharmacy in the city. In 1854 was appointed Professor of Chemistry at the University of Strasbourg, a post previously held by Louis Pasteur.[1][2]
In 1856, after receiving his medical degree, Béchamp took a position at the University of Montpellier, where he remained until 1876 when he was appointed Dean of the Catholic Faculty of Medicine at Université Lille Nord de France. Béchamp's time in Lille was stormy, as his dispute with Pasteur led to efforts to have his work placed on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (the index of books prohibited by the Catholic Church). Béchamp retired under this cloud in 1886, briefly ran a pharmacy with his son, and ultimately moved to Paris, where he was given a small laboratory at the Sorbonne. He died at the age of 91, his work having faded into scientific obscurity and Pasteur's version of germ theory dominant.[1][2]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Manchester KL (2001). "Antoine Béchamp: pere de la biologie. Oui ou non?". Endeavour. 25 (2): 68–73. PMID 11484677.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ a b c d Manchester KL (2007). "Louis Pasteur, fermentation, and a rival". South African Journal of Science. 103 (9–10). ISSN 0038-2353.
- ^ "Obituary: Professor Bechamp". British Medical Journal. 1 (2471): 1150. 1908. PMC 2436492.