Jonas Edward Salk (October 28, 1914 – June 23, 1995) was an American biologist and physician best known for the research and development of a killed-virus polio vaccine, the eponymous Salk vaccine. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 504 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (700 × 832 pixel, file size: 59 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Jonas Salk ... is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... New York, New York redirects here. ... Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... One of the beaches at La Jolla Cove. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... For other uses, see Jew (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Doctor. ... Epidemiology (Greek epi = upon, among; demos = people, district; logos = word, discourse), defined literally, is the study of epidemics in humans. ... The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related, doctoral/research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. ... For other uses, see Alma mater (disambiguation). ... “City College” redirects here. ... New York University (NYU) is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational research university in New York City. ... Dr. Thomas Francis, Jr. ... Two polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat polio. ... The Albert Lasker Medical Research Awards have been awarded annually since 1946 to living persons who have made major contributions to medical science. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of organisms. ... For other uses, see Doctor. ... Two polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat polio. ... An eponym is the name of a person, whether real or fictitious, who has (or is thought to have) given rise to the name of a particular place, tribe, discovery, or other item. ... A vaccine is an antigenic preparation used to establish immunity to a disease. ...

During his life, Salk worked in New York, Michigan, Pittsburgh and California. In his later career, he devoted much energy toward the development of an AIDS vaccine. This article is about the state. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... Pittsburgh redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... There is no known cure for AIDS and so the search for a vaccine against the causative agent, HIV, has become part of the struggle against the disease. ...

While being interviewed by Edward R. Murrow on See It Now in 1955, Salk was asked: "Who owns the patent on this vaccine?" Surprised by the question's assumption of the requirement of a profit motive for his creation, he responded: "There is no patent. Could you patent the sun?" ^[1] Edward R. Ed Murrow (April 25, 1908 – April 27, 1965) was an American journalist and media figure. ... See It Now was a television newsmagazine and documentary broadcast by CBS in the 1950s. ...

Biography

Jonas Salk was born in New York City to Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, Dora and Daniel B. Salk. He had two brothers, Lee and Herman Salk. Herman became a veterinarian, and Lee became a clinical psychologist. Jonas graduated from Townsend Harris High School and then went to the City College of New York, where he earned a B.Sc. He received a medical degree from the School of Medicine at New York University in June 1939. New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... For other uses, see Jew (disambiguation). ... Look up veterinarian in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Clinical psychology is the application of psychology to mental illness or mental health problems. ... Townsend Harris High School is a public magnet high school for the humanities in the borough of Queens in New York City. ... “City College” redirects here. ... B.S. redirects here. ... The Medicinæ Doctor or Doctor of Medicine (M.D. or D.M.) is a doctorate level degree held by medical doctors. ... Shield of the New York University School of Medicine The New York University School of Medicine is one of the graduate schools of New York University. ... New York University (NYU) is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational research university in New York City. ...

While in college he met his future wife, Donna Lindsay, whom he married on June 9, 1939. They had three children: Peter, Darrell, and Jonathan. In 1968, they divorced, and in 1970 Salk married Françoise Gilot, the former mistress of Pablo Picasso. is the 160th day of the year (161st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Françoise Gilot (born 1921) is known as a companion of Picasso between 1944 and 1953. ... Picasso redirects here. ...

As a child, Salk did not show any interest in medicine or science in general. He says in an interview with the Academy of Achievement:^{[citation needed]} The American Academy of Achievement is a nonprofit organization that seeks to educate and inspire youth. ...

"As a child I was not interested in human anatomy. I was merely interested in things human, the human side of nature, if you like, and I continue to be interested in that. That's what motivates me. And in a way, it's the human dimension that has intrigued me."

His first desire was to become a lawyer and only due to his mother's persuasion (which included her telling him he wouldn’t be good at it), he changed from a pre-law student to a pre-med student. During his first year in medical school, he was offered the chance to do research and teach biochemistry. He recalls this experience in the previously mentioned interview: For the fish called lawyer, see Burbot. ... Wöhler observes the synthesis of urea. ...

At one point at the end of my first year of medical school, I received an opportunity to spend a year in research and teaching in biochemistry, which I did. And at the end of that year, I was told I could, if I wished, switch and get a Ph.D. in biochemistry but my preference was to stay with medicine. And I believe that this is all linked to my original ambition, or desire, which was to be of some help to humankind, so to speak, in a larger sense than just on a one-to-one basis.^{[citation needed]}

While attending the NYU School of Medicine, he heard two lectures that would change his life forever. Salk reflected on the lectures in 1990:

In the first lecture, we were told that it was possible to immunize against diphtheria and tetanus by the use of a chemically treated toxin [to kill it]... In the very next lecture, we were told that in order to immunize against a virus disease it was necessary to go through the experience of infection. It was not possible to kill the virus... The light went on at that point. I said that those two statements can’t possibly both be true. One has to be false.^{[citation needed]}

In 1938, while still in college, Salk began working with Dr. Thomas Francis, Jr. on an influenza vaccine. In 1941, Francis was appointed the head of the epidemiology department at the newly formed School of Public Health at the University of Michigan, and Salk, who in 1942 won a research fellowship, followed him. Together they worked to develop an influenza vaccine at the behest of the United States Army. Salk advanced to the position of assistant professor of epidemiology and continued his work on virology. Tetanus is a medical condition that is characterized by a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. ... This article is about biological infectious particles. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Dr. Thomas Francis, Jr. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ... Epidemiology is the study of factors affecting the health and illness of populations, and serves as the foundation and logic of interventions made in the interest of public health and preventive medicine. ... The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (U of M, U-M, UM or simply Michigan) is a coeducational public research university in the state of Michigan. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... Epidemiology is the study of factors affecting the health and illness of populations, and serves as the foundation and logic of interventions made in the interest of public health and preventive medicine. ... Virology, often considered a part of microbiology or of pathology, is the study of organic viruses: their structure and classification, their ways to infect and exploit cells to reproduce and cause disease, the techniques to isolate and culture them, and their potential uses in research and therapy. ...

After medical school, Salk first worked as a staff physician at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. Later, he worked for Dr. Francis's virus lab at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. In 1947, he moved to Pittsburgh, where he led the Virus Research lab at the University of Pittsburgh. This page is about a medical school in New York. ... The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (U of M, U-M, UM or simply Michigan) is a coeducational public research university in the state of Michigan. ... Pittsburgh redirects here. ... The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related, doctoral/research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. ...

During the 1950s, Salk developed, tested and refined the first successful killed-virus polio vaccine, using inactive (dead) poliovirus cells that were injected into the body. In 1955 he began immunizations at Pittsburgh's Arsenal Elementary School in the Lawrenceville neighborhood. (Hilary Koprowski had already in 1950 initiated the use of an oral attenuated-live-virus polio vaccine, which would prove to be the future of polio immunization.) Two polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat polio. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... Hilary Koprowski, Warsaw (Poland), September 16, 2007 Hilary Koprowski Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hilary Koprowski Hilary Koprowski (b. ...

In 1965, Salk struck out on his own, leaving the University of Pittsburgh and establishing the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California, where the major focus of study was molecular biology and genetics. The first faculty included many distinguished members such as Jacob Bronowski and Francis Crick. Salk directed the institute until his retirement in 1985. The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related, doctoral/research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. ... Salk Institute Salk Institute The Salk Institute for Biological Studies is an independent non-profit educational research organization in La Jolla, California. ... One of the beaches at La Jolla Cove La Jolla, California, is a seaside resort community comprised of 42,808[1] residents within the city of San Diego. ... Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level. ... This article is about the general scientific term. ... Jacob Bronowski (January 18, 1908, Łódź, Congress Poland, Russian Empire - August 22, 1974, East Hampton, New York, USA) was an English-Polish mathematician, best known as the presenter of the BBC television documentary series, The Ascent of Man. ... Francis Harry Compton Crick OM FRS (8 June 1916 – 28 July 2004), (Ph. ...

During Dr. Salk's last years, he co-founded The Immune Response Corporation with Kevin Kimberlin to search for a vaccine against AIDS, and patented a p24- vaccine as "Remune". Mr. ... For other uses, see AIDS (disambiguation). ...

Jonas Salk died on June 23, 1995 in La Jolla, CA, at the age of 80 due to heart failure. is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... One of the beaches at La Jolla Cove. ...

Polio vaccine

Main article: Polio vaccine

In 1947, Salk received a position at the University of Pittsburgh, as the head of the Virus Research lab. Though he continued his research on improving the influenza vaccine, he set his sights on the poliomyelitis virus. Although about 99% of cases of polio are asymptomatic, the polio virus can attack the nervous system and within a few hours of infection, paralysis can occur. The death rate for paralytic cases is about 5-10%. Death usually occurs when the breathing muscles become paralyzed. Polio was sometimes hard to diagnose because of its flu-like symptoms, which include stiff neck, fever, and headache. Two polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat polio. ... The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related, doctoral/research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. ... This article is about the disease. ... Poliomyelitis (polio) is a viral paralytic disease. ... The nervous system is a highly specialized network whose principal components are nerves called neurons. ... Paralysed redirects here. ... Mortality rate is the annual number of deaths per 1000 people. ... Respiratory disease properly named influenza(say: in-floo-en-zah ). Some specific varities of influenza with a vaccination available are: A-New Caledonia, A-California, B-Shanghai. ...

At that time, it was believed that immunity can come only after the body has survived at least a mild infection by live virus. In contrast, Salk observed that it is possible to acquire immunity through contact with inactivated (killed) virus. Using formaldehyde, Salk killed the polio virus, but kept it intact enough to trigger the necessary immune response. Salk's research caught the attention of Basil O'Connor, president of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (now known as the March of Dimes Foundation). The organization decided to fund Salk's efforts to develop a killed virus vaccine. Formaldehyde is the chemical compound with the formula H2CO. It is the simplest aldehyde-- an organic compound containing a terminal carbonyl group: it consists of exactly one carbonyl. ... Basil OConnor[1] (January 8, 1892 Taunton, Massachusetts - March 8, 1972) was an American lawyer. ... The March of Dimes is a voluntary health charity founded in 1938 by United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis to defeat polio, a disease which crippled him. ... March of Dimes is the name of a United States health charity, whose mission is to improve the health of babies. ...

The vaccine was first tested in monkeys, and then in patients at the D.T. Watson Home for Crippled Children. After successful tests, in 1952, Salk tested his vaccine on volunteering parties, including himself, the laboratory staff, his wife, and his children. In 1954, national testing began on two million children, ages six to nine, who became known as the Polio Pioneers. This was one of the first double-blind placebo-controlled tests, which has since become standard: half of the treated received the vaccine, and half received a placebo, where neither the individuals nor the researchers know who belongs to the control group and the experimental group. One-third of the children, who lived in areas where vaccine was not available, were observed in order to evaluate the background level of polio in this age group. On April 12, 1955, the results were announced: the vaccine was safe and effective. The patient would develop immunity to the live disease due to the body's earlier reaction to the killed virus. The D.T. Watson Home for Crippled Children is famous as one of the first sites in the world to test the Jonas Salk vaccine for Polio. ... The double blind is ray charles is ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesis ray charlesof the scientific method, used to prevent research... For other uses, see Placebo (disambiguation). ... is the 102nd day of the year (103rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ...

Salk's vaccine was instrumental in beginning the eradication of polio, a once widely-feared disease. Polio epidemics in 1916 left about 6000 dead and 27,000 paralyzed in the United States. In 1952, 57,628 cases were recorded in the U.S. After the vaccine became available, polio cases in the U.S. dropped by 85-90 percent in only two years. Unfortunately, some drug companies manufactured contaminated polio vaccine containing live virus, and this error cost dozens of lives. A child receives oral polio vaccine during a 2002 campaign to immunize children in India. ...

However, the live-virus oral vaccine developed by Albert Sabin became the preferred alternative after a sometimes intense clash between the two scientists and their adherents. The Salk vaccine, which is injected, proved to be effective in sharply reducing the number of polio cases in the United States. One disadvantage to the Salk vaccine was that booster shots had to be taken periodically. The Sabin vaccine had the advantage of easier delivery and became accepted in the United States after the testing abroad. It was licensed in 1961 and eventually became the vaccine of choice in most parts of the world. The last indigenous case of polio in the U.S. was reported in 1991. Partly because of that fact, only inactivated, Sabin-type polio vaccines have been recommended for use in the United States since 2000.^[2] Albert Sabin, creator of the oral polio vaccine. ...

The Salk vaccine was based upon plasmid DNA. Esther M. Zimmer Lederberg and Jonas Salk were colleagues and friends. However, Lederberg had expressed reservations concerning polio and the Salk vaccine. Esther Lederberg was quite well aware that from a epidemiological viewpoint it was possible that Salk's vaccine was not as effective as he thought. Specifically, the incidence of polio was noted to occur in waves. Thus, Lederberg wondered whether the marked reduction in polio cases was due to Salk's vaccine or the end of a wave of infection (and Salk's vaccine having little effect). Lederberg felt that Salk could have done more to elucidate this possible ambiguity had he kept better records.^[3] The structure of part of a DNA double helix Deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is a nucleic acid molecule that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms. ...

Honors

• In 1956, he was awarded the Lasker Award; in 1958, The Bruce Memorial Award; in 1975, The Jawaharlal Nehru Award and the Congressional Gold Medal

• In 1977, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Jimmy Carter, with the following statement accompanying the medal:

"Because of Doctor Jonas E. Salk, our country is free from the cruel epidemics of poliomyelitis that once struck almost yearly. Because of his tireless work, untold hundreds of thousands who might have been crippled are sound in body today. These are Doctor Salk's true honors, and there is no way to add to them. This Medal of Freedom can only express our gratitude, and our deepest thanks."^[4]

• In the late 1950s Salk was elected to the Polio Hall of Fame, which was dedicated in Warm Springs, Georgia on January 2, 1958
• On December 5, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver inducted Salk into the California Hall of Fame, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts.^[5]

• There are schools in Bolingbrook, Illinois, Levittown, New York, Old Bridge, New Jersey and Sacramento, California named for him.

Special Quotes: "Always be the best you can be." The Albert Lasker Medical Research Awards have been awarded annually since 1946 to living persons who have made major contributions to medical science. ... Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding is an international award presented by the Government of India founded in 1965. ... Congressional Gold Medal presented to Navajo Code talkers in 2000 The Congressional Gold Medal should not be confused with the Medal of Honor (commonly called the Congressional Medal of Honor), which is also awarded by Congress, but only to military members as the highest military decoration of the United States. ... The Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is one of the two highest civilian awards in the United States and is bestowed by the President of the United States (the other award which is considered its equivalent is the Congressional Gold Medal, which is bestowed by an... For other persons named Jimmy Carter, see Jimmy Carter (disambiguation). ... View of the hall. ... Warm Springs is a city in Meriwether County, Georgia, United States. ... is the 2nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Jan. ... Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (German IPA: ; born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian-American bodybuilder, Golden Globe-winning actor, businessman and politician currently serving as the 38th Governor of the U.S. state of California. ... Maria Owings Shriver (pronounced: ) (born November 6, 1955[1] in Chicago, Illinois) is an American journalist and the wife of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and as such, the current First Lady of California. ... Conceived by First Lady Maria Shriver, the California Hall of Fame was established with The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts to honor legendary individuals and families who embody California’s innovative spirit and have made their mark on history. ... The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts – home of the California Hall of Fame – is housed in the State Archives Building in Sacramento, one block from the State Capitol. ... Incorporated Village in 1965. ... Levittown, a suburb of New York City, is a hamlet and unincorporated political subdivision of New York State located on Long Island in Nassau County, New York. ... Old Bridge is a census-designated place located in Middlesex County, New Jersey. ... Sacramento redirects here. ...

Further reading

• Man Unfolding (1972)
• Survival of the Wisest (1973)
• World Population and Human Values: A New Reality (1981)
• Anatomy of Reality (1983)

See also

• Polio vaccine
• Hilary Koprowski
• March of Dimes
• Ontario March of Dimes
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
• Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Wikiquote is one of a family of wiki-based projects run by the Wikimedia Foundation, running on MediaWiki software. ... Two polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat polio. ... Hilary Koprowski, Warsaw (Poland), September 16, 2007 Hilary Koprowski Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hilary Koprowski Hilary Koprowski (b. ... March of Dimes is the name of a United States health charity, whose mission is to improve the health of babies. ... Ontario March of Dimes (officially Rehabilitation Foundation for the Disabled) is a Canadian charitable organization which provides services to people with physical disabilities, including people with post-polio syndrome. ... The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related, doctoral/research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. ... The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) is one of the best centers for research and treatment. ... Salk Institute Salk Institute The Salk Institute for Biological Studies is an independent non-profit educational research organization in La Jolla, California. ...

References

External links

• The Time 100 The Most Important People of the Century
• Jonas Salk Trust
• Salk Institute for Biological Studies
• 1985 Open Mind interview with Richard D. Heffer: Man Evolving...
• University of Pittsburgh Jonas Salk site
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette feature on Jonas Salk and the Polio cure 50 years later
• The Salk School of Science (New York, NY)
• Patent US Patent 5,256,767 : Vaccine against HIV