Maryland Horseshoe Crab

Dr. Frederick Bang (1916-1981) may not be a familiar name to many people, but he was a central figure to the technologies of medical automation.  In 1953, when he was chairman of parasitology at Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene, he and colleagues reported that the blood of the blue horseshoe crab had a remarkable property.  In the presence of gram-negative bacteria, the crab’s blood clumped and changed color because of its high copper content.  The extractable biochemical was limulus amebocyte lystate, which became an assay for bacterial contamination of implantable devices, saline solutions, vaccines and masks.   MORE

Image Credit:   Baltimore.cbslocal.com