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The scientist is best known in abroad that in his homeland
northand on October 27 “Google” – the most famous search engine on the Internet, celebrated with a special drawing the birthday of Bulgarian Stamen Grigorov. He is the scientist who first analyzed the composition of yogurt in detail and discovered the main bacteria that make milk ferment and become bitter. In honor of Grigorov’s homeland, the bacterium is called Bacillus Bulgaricus.
The drawing with which Google marked the birth of Dr. Stamen Grigorov.
Unfortunately, this great scientist is not very famous in his country. And you have an incredible life destiny and a unique career opportunity.
The story begins in the village of Studen Izvor in Trun, where a son was born in the family of Gigo and Zvezda Grigorovi.
All of them
previous
8 children die
To survive the ninth, which they named Stamen, Zvezda performed magic in Stan Kamak’s area.
Pierce the lower end of the newborn’s ear and try to beat his Cannes roar: “Satan, evil force, look, see what hole Stamenko has in his ear, go through, you bastard, and see where you come from. Don’t take Stamenko from us, like our other children. At least leave it to us … ”Gigo hangs the bag with the baby on a branched tree. He falls to his knees and begins to be baptized. Stamenko survives. After him, two more children were born in the family: Krastana and Hristo.
When the boy finished his primary education in his hometown, teacher Andon Mitov said: “Stamenko has six in all subjects. But if I could, I would write him not six, but three more times … “
In 1889, the boy entered Trun High School. His ambition is to become a teacher. There will be a long talk about his work on “Life and death”. When he graduated from high school, he was awarded the book “The Origin of Species” by Charles Darwin.
It became Stamenko’s desk reading while studying at the men’s high school in Sofia, at that time the most prestigious high school in Bulgaria. Aside from science, Grigorov is also strong in mathematics and physics. And again he surprised everyone with his story in the last high school class: “The evolution of animal peace and religion.” And again, brilliant argumentation and philosophical depth of comments and conclusions.
After graduating with honors from high school, Stamen Grigorov faces a difficult choice. Teacher or doctor? Educate the people of the ignorant region of Transnistria or cure them of diseases?
Here, the son of the French consul in Sofia plays the role of fate. Stamen is fluent in French, and the descendant of an aristocratic family is impressed not only by the breadth of knowledge and general culture of the Bulgarian peasant, but also by his refined demeanor. The Frenchman “infected” Stamenko with the idea of going to study at the Montpellier Institute of Natural Sciences. And the ambassador is helping to make this game a reality.
In 1898, Stamen Grigorov, 20, became a full-time student at the Montpellier institute. In the first months he impressed teachers and colleagues with his extensive knowledge and the passion with which he is dedicated to scientific and laboratory activities.
Stamen pleasantly surprises the Montpellier teachers. He is not the usual son of a spoiled rich man, but a young man seriously dedicated to science, unlike many other students from the Balkan countries who went to France on vacation rather than to study seriously. French professors recommend that Stamen move from the natural sciences to medicine, where he will find a more complete realization.
The young man is graduating
ahead of schedule
Faculty
in natural sciences
and in 1901 he became a student at the Geneva Medical School. Among the professors is the world famous bacteriologist Prof. Leon Masol. Impressed by his performance on the bacteriology exam, he invited him to be his assistant.
At that time, the director of the Pasteur Institute in Paris was Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov, a bacteriologist who had emigrated from Russia. According to his idea, a survey was conducted in 36 countries on the number of centenarians and their participation in the respective country.
Surprisingly, poor Bulgaria turns out to be in first place in terms of centuries. They do a new test and the results are repeated. Mechnikov speculates that this longevity may be due to the yogurt. Bulgarians are the only ones in the world who produce and eat yogurt. Mechnikov shares his conjecture in some scientific journals.
But running out of money, Stamen Grigorov was forced to return to Bulgaria. Without much hope that he would ever return to Geneva.
In Trun, the role of destiny is played by his former partner Darinka, who marries him. She comes from a wealthy family and says that Stamen must complete his education abroad.
And just a week after the wedding, he went back to Geneva. Darinka does not hide her tears for the separation. But even they do not prevent her from seeing with amazement the care with which her husband puts in his luggage a handkerchief (clay pot) with milk thistle.
In Prof. Masol’s laboratory, Stamen Grigorov looked under the microscope for weeks, searching for an answer to the question of what turns fresh milk into yogurt.
And one day go
“A stick”
As if he had forgotten his French education, he literally invaded Professor Masol’s office. We don’t know what the two of them talked about, but the Frenchman wrote a letter to his Russian colleague Mechnikov: “My assistant Stamen Grigorov, a Slav from Bulgaria, surprised me with his great perseverance in his research work. After numerous and constant experiments in my laboratory, he managed to find and isolate the cause of the Bulgarian yogurt. Also, the sourdough was brought directly from Bulgaria … “
Mechnikov invited the Bulgarian to the Pasteur Institute, which he directs, and asked him to present a report on his discovery to the institute’s scientific staff. In the authoritative French scientific journal “Review Medical de la Suis Romand”, number 10 of 1905, Stamen Grigorov published an article in which he gave complete information on the cause of Bulgarian yogurt, a lactic acid bacillus. It is called “Lacto bacteria bulgaricum” – Bulgarian lactic acid bacteria.
In one of the corridors of the Geneva Medical Institute, Professor Masol presented Stamen Grigorov with a special diploma and a sum of money. Stamenko takes the awards and bows to the audience. And the French teacher says: “Remember this name! World science has yet to appreciate the value of his discovery. “
Then Stamen Grigorov
He’s only 27 years old!
In July 1905 he defended his doctoral thesis on “Contribution to the pathogenesis of appendicitis” and received the title of “doctor of medical sciences, bacteriologist – internal and mammary diseases”.
Professor Masol invites the young Bulgarian scientist to stay in Geneva and take his chair. Dr. Grigorov appreciated the invitation, but declined; He promised to help and serve the people of Bulgaria and his homeland. An invitation follows to direct the Pasteur Institute in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Dr. Grigorov refuses again.
The governing body of the Pasteur Institute personally appointed Prof. Mechnikov through the methods of his research to reaffirm the discovery of Stamen Grigorov and report to the scientific council of the Institute. Unfortunately, the author of the discovery will not participate in this restatement. With a doctor’s degree in your pocket
get back to business
poor Tran region
Many European scientists, interested in the discovery of Bulgarian, write about it in their scientific publications. In Bulgaria, however, our scientists and semi-scientists believe that the discoverer of the bacteria is Prof. Mechnikov. They do it out of envy, don’t they think that a Bulgarian can make such a discovery? But if they are not forgotten, they condemn Dr. Grigorov to long-term isolation from scientific circles.
While treating the people of Transko, Dr. Stamen Grigorov examined tuberculosis. He described the results of these studies in a scientific article, which he sent to the most authoritative medical journal at the time: “La Press Medical” in Paris. The article is titled “The Tuberculosis Vaccine” and was published in the magazine on December 29, 1906.
Admission to the publications of this journal follows a relentless scientific and editorial filter. It is common practice for “judges” to be reviewers with proven contribution.
The publication sees the light only after the unanimous consent of the academic direction, if it considers that scientific communication has the character of a fundamental study. But … Dr. Grigorov’s article is still unknown in Bulgaria. He is a scientist recognized in the world, but not in his envious homeland …
On October 27, 1945, the day of his birth, Dr. Grigorov died. Two days later, on October 29, Radio Sofía announced his death on its evening program. The news from the Bulgarian radio was caught by Radio Milan and on October 30 all European radio stations announced the sad news of the death of the famous Dr. Stamen Grigorov, the discoverer of Bacterium Bulgaricus and a tuberculosis researcher.
“It has always been said in our family that Dr. Stamen Grigorov created a new vaccine or drug. And he first tested it on himself,” says Julia Grigorova, who is his great-granddaughter.
And his granddaughter Veneta, Stamen Grigorov’s great-granddaughter, is now studying at Sofia’s high school of mathematics. And he has already decided that after graduating he will go to Holland to study microbiology …
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