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A historical and political epistemology of microbes

This article traces the historical co‐evolution of microbiology, bacteriology, and virology, framed within industrial and agricultural contexts, as well as their role in colonial and national history between the end of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century. The epistemology of g...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: D'Abramo, Flavio, Neumeyer, Sybille
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7404376/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32834061
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1600-0498.12300
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author D'Abramo, Flavio
Neumeyer, Sybille
author_facet D'Abramo, Flavio
Neumeyer, Sybille
author_sort D'Abramo, Flavio
collection PubMed
description This article traces the historical co‐evolution of microbiology, bacteriology, and virology, framed within industrial and agricultural contexts, as well as their role in colonial and national history between the end of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century. The epistemology of germ theory, coupled with the economic interests of European colonies, has shaped the understanding of human‐microbial relationships in a reductionist way. We explore a brief history of the medical and biological sciences, focusing on microbes and the difficulty of implementing germ theory outside of biology laboratories. Furthermore, we highlight the work of Lynn Margulis, who conceptualized microbes within their ecological contexts. Such research shows the active role microbes play in handling life‐sustaining biological and biochemical processes. We outline how the industrial and technological advancements of the last two centuries not only impacted almost all human societies, but also changed the world on microbial, biological, and geological levels. The narration of these histories is a complex task, and depends on how national, international, and intergovernmental institutions (such as the World Health Organization) conceive of the selective environmental pressures exerted by industry and biotechnological companies.
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spelling pubmed-74043762020-08-05 A historical and political epistemology of microbes D'Abramo, Flavio Neumeyer, Sybille Centaurus Spotlight Issue: Histories of Epidemics in the Time of Covid‐19 This article traces the historical co‐evolution of microbiology, bacteriology, and virology, framed within industrial and agricultural contexts, as well as their role in colonial and national history between the end of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century. The epistemology of germ theory, coupled with the economic interests of European colonies, has shaped the understanding of human‐microbial relationships in a reductionist way. We explore a brief history of the medical and biological sciences, focusing on microbes and the difficulty of implementing germ theory outside of biology laboratories. Furthermore, we highlight the work of Lynn Margulis, who conceptualized microbes within their ecological contexts. Such research shows the active role microbes play in handling life‐sustaining biological and biochemical processes. We outline how the industrial and technological advancements of the last two centuries not only impacted almost all human societies, but also changed the world on microbial, biological, and geological levels. The narration of these histories is a complex task, and depends on how national, international, and intergovernmental institutions (such as the World Health Organization) conceive of the selective environmental pressures exerted by industry and biotechnological companies. Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2020-07-12 2020-05 /pmc/articles/PMC7404376/ /pubmed/32834061 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1600-0498.12300 Text en © 2020 The Authors. Centaurus published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Spotlight Issue: Histories of Epidemics in the Time of Covid‐19
D'Abramo, Flavio
Neumeyer, Sybille
A historical and political epistemology of microbes
title A historical and political epistemology of microbes
title_full A historical and political epistemology of microbes
title_fullStr A historical and political epistemology of microbes
title_full_unstemmed A historical and political epistemology of microbes
title_short A historical and political epistemology of microbes
title_sort historical and political epistemology of microbes
topic Spotlight Issue: Histories of Epidemics in the Time of Covid‐19
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7404376/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32834061
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1600-0498.12300
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