In 1928, at St. Mary’s Hospital, London, Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin. This discovery led to the introduction of antibiotics that greatly reduced the number of deaths from infection.

Who discovered penicillin and how was it first identified?

In 1928 Dr Alexander Fleming returned from a holiday to find mould growing on a Petri dish of Staphylococcus bacteria. He noticed the mould seemed to be preventing the bacteria around it from growing. He soon identified that the mould produced a self-defence chemical that could kill bacteria.

Who discovered amoxicillin?

Amoxicillin was discovered by scientists at Beecham Research Laboratories in 1972. The narrow spectrum of antimicrobial activity of the penicillins, led to the search for derivatives of penicillin which could treat a wider range of infections.