Edward Jenner was an English physician born in 1749 who is considered the pioneer of smallpox vaccines and the father of immunology. In 1796, Jenner inoculated an 8-year old boy with cowpox matter from the hand of a milkmaid, producing immunity to smallpox. Over subsequent tests of 23 subjects, Jenner demonstrated that inoculation with cowpox provided effective protection against smallpox. Jenner's discovery led to worldwide vaccination programs and the eventual global eradication of smallpox by 1980.

1. Edward Jenner
Gopisankar.M.G.
2008 MBBS

2. Edward Jenner(1749-1823)
 Pioneer of small
pox vaccine
 Father of
immunology

3. life of Jenner….
 Born on 17th
May 1749(Berkeley)
 From the age of 14yrs ,trained as
apprentice to Daniel Ludlow, a surgeon
 In 1770-worked under surgeon John
Hunter at St.George’s hospital.
 Returned to Berkeley in 1773,practised
as GP & surgeon.
 Edward Jenner died of stroke at the age
of 73, on 26 January 1823

4. Small pox
 Disease goes
through stages of
macules ,papules,
vesicles,pustules
over the skin.
 Severe forms-
hemorrhagic

5.  Greatly feared disease for thousands of years
 Caused by Variola virus
 1/3rd
of the patients died
 Survivors –badly disfigured
 10 yrs before eradication ,the disease was
present in 44 countries, with a global incidence
of around 10 million cases annually !!!

6. Jenner Vs Pox
 Jenner’s initial theory-
The initial source of infection was a disease of
horses, called "the grease", and that this was
transferred to cows by farm workers,
transformed, and then manifested as cowpox.
 He noted-Milkmaids don't generally get small
pox
 He theorized it-pus in the blisters which
milkmaids received from cowpox (a disease
similar to smallpox, but much less virulent)
protected the milkmaids from smallpox.

7.  On 14 May 1796,
 Inoculated James Phipps, a young boy of 8
years (the son of Jenner's gardener), with
material from the cowpox blisters of the hand of
Sarah Nelmes, a milkmaid who had caught
cowpox from a cow called Blossom
 produced a fever and some uneasiness but no
great illness
 Injected Phipps with variolous material –No
disease followed
 Again challenged with variolous material-but no
sign of infection

8. Why Jenner was successful??
 Not only inoculated cowpox ,but also
proved that they are immune to small
pox
 Demonstrated that the protective
cowpox could be effectively inoculated
from person to person, not just directly
from cattle.
 He tested his theory on a series of 23
subjects. This aspect of his research
method increased the validity of his
evidence.

9.  He continued his research and reported it
to the Royal Society, who did not publish
the initial report.
 After improvement and further work, he
published a report of twenty-three cases
 In 1803 in London he became involved
with the Jennerian Institution, a society
concerned with promoting vaccination to
eradicate smallpox.

10. Post- Jenner era
 17 yrs after his death(1840), British
government banned variolation ( the
use of smallpox itself) and provided
vaccination (using cowpox )free of
charge.
 In 1976,Global eradication programme
of Smallpox –initiated by WHO.
 After 10 years-disease was wiped out ,

11.  .
 Last stock is in – USA and Russia
 They were to be destroyed by June 30 ,
1999.
 But fears of the possible use of small pox
in bioterrorism led to an indefinite
extension of the deadline.
 Whole world was certified “small pox free
area” in October 1979.

Formally declared by WHO in 8th
May
1980

12. Remembering the great man…..
-Jenner's house is now a small museum
housing among other things the horns of
the cow, Blossom (Berkeley).
-Near the small Gloucestershire village of
Uley, Downham Hill is locally known as
'Smallpox Hill', with a possible connection
to Jenner's local work with the disease.

13.  A statue was erected
in Trafalgar Square,
later moved to
Kensington Gardens.
