Patrick Laidlaw
Encyclopedia
Patrick Playfair Laidlaw (1881-1940) was a British virologist.
He was one of the scientists working at the Medical Research Council
at Mill Hill
who first isolated influenza virus from humans. This happened when ferret
s they were working on to develop a distemper
vaccine caught influenza from one of the scientists in the laboratory.
He was one of the scientists working at the Medical Research Council
Medical Research Council (UK)
The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded agency responsible for co-ordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is one of seven Research Councils in the UK and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
at Mill Hill
Mill Hill
Mill Hill is a place in the London Borough of Barnet. It is a suburb situated 9 miles north west of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until it was absorbed by London...
who first isolated influenza virus from humans. This happened when ferret
Ferret
The ferret is a domesticated mammal of the type Mustela putorius furo. Ferrets are sexually dimorphic predators with males being substantially larger than females. They typically have brown, black, white, or mixed fur...
s they were working on to develop a distemper
Distemper
Distemper may refer to:*A viral infection**Canine distemper, a disease of dogs**Feline distemper, a disease of cats**Phocine distemper, a disease of seals*A bacterial infection**Equine distemper, or Strangles, a bacterial infection of the horse...
vaccine caught influenza from one of the scientists in the laboratory.
Further reading
- Smith W, Andrewes CH, Laidlaw PP. A virus obtained from influenza patients. Lancet. 1933;2:66–8.
- Distemper and Influenza at Mill Hill by Rick Carver and John Skehel from Mill Hill Essays 2000