The history of microbiologist Z.V. Ermoleva’s scientific activity: a brief overview of soviet historiography

Abstract

The paper attempts to analyze the key lines of the soviet historiography in the coverage of scientific and organizational activities of Zinaida Vissarionovna Ermoleva, as well as to characterize the degree of information content of publications on the problem. Z.V.Ermoleva (18981974) is a famous soviet medical scientist, a microbiologist and a bacteriogenic, a winner of the Stalin prize I degree, an honored worker of science of Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, a professor, a doctor of medical sciences, an academician of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR. Her scientific and practical activities helped to save thousands of people from death. One of the most famous achievements of Z.V.Ermoleva was the invention of the first domestic antibiotic penicillin-krustosin and the establishment of its industrial production in the harsh years of the Great Patriotic War. There were also numerous works on the study of cholera vibrions, interferon, lysozyme, various types of antibiotics and their combinations. Z.V.Ermolevas life as well as the history of her research activities are not well reflected in scientific literature. Unfortunately, no historiographical work has been published on the history of this amazing woman scientist. This historiographical review is not exhaustive; it should be perceived as a ground for a further study of her scientific work. Due to the specificity of the subject under consideration, the historiographical review is based on the problem principle.