Revisiting the Commercial–Academic Interface

Abstract

In the mid-1940s, Selman Waksman, a soil microbiologist, and his team discovered streptomycin, an antibiotic with action against the tubercle bacillus.(1) Although he was able to show efficacy in the laboratory, Waksman realized that if his discovery was to be of value to the world, he needed a partner capable of manufacturing adequate amounts of the material under conditions that would make it suitable for use in humans. He therefore struck a deal with Merck to produce streptomycin for clinical use.(1) Soon thereafter, the British Medical Association undertook a large randomized, controlled trial of streptomycin for the treatment of tuberculosis. . . .