Chapter 120 Tropical Disease Research Center
January 4, 1868
Berlin, the political center of Prussia, is also one of its academic centers.
Many Prussian universities, academic and research institutions gather here.
Today, Ernst also established a medical research institution in Berlin - Tropical Disease Research Center.
Ernst knows nothing about medicine like a rolling pin blowing fire. But with money, nothing can be done, and there are plenty of talented people and strangers who come to invest when the funds are in place.
Tropical Disease Research Center, just by its name, you can tell that its research projects are mainly to overcome tropical diseases.
As a country with no colonies overseas at mid-latitudes, Prussia’s research on tropical diseases is basically zero compared with Britain and France in the same period.
In this era, let alone the study of tropical diseases, common infectious diseases are still in the exploratory stage, so it is absolutely difficult to make achievements.
Ernst does not expect that his research results will immediately improve the medical conditions in East Africa, but it is correct to make technical reserves in advance.
Why in the previous life, those western medical companies and research institutions were able to monopolize the most cutting-edge theories and technologies of medicine.
It is not because they started early, coupled with the strong national support of the West, that they built a strong fortress.
The Tropical Disease Research Center is responsible for preparing technology and experience for the future medicine in East Africa. It is not a problem to be one step behind, but it is terrible to be behind every step.
Tropical Disease Research Center, although the name contains the word tropical, in fact the research field is not limited to the tropics.
This research center will be divided into two parts, one part will be built in East Africa, and the other part will be built in Berlin.
After all, we are conducting research on infectious diseases in Berlin. Without fresh-keeping technology, it is difficult to obtain tropical virus and bacterial samples (live bodies are okay), so the Berlin part mainly studies traditional diseases in the European continent.
In East Africa, the establishment of a tropical disease research center will definitely cost more money. For example, personnel must only choose medical talents who have received higher education in Europe.
There is no huge benefit. Whoever goes to Africa to work for you does not rule out those who have pure love and lofty ideals who are willing to throw their heads and blood for the cause of human medicine, but everyone still has to eat.
So the salaries of the staff of the East African Tropical Disease Research Center must not be low, and they must be provided with huge insurance to relieve their worries.
Medical equipment is a large expense, which cannot be saved. If you want to make achievements, you must have the blessing of the most advanced medical tools.
Berlin is okay, but the place in East Africa has to be transported by sea, which takes time, effort and money.
At the same time, Ernst is preparing to purchase a batch of medical materials from all over the world for professional reference.
For example, penicillin, this kind of thing, Ernst heard about ancient China in his previous life, and Ernst didn’t know if it was true or not. After all, the Internet was a big ditch in his previous life, and rumors cost nothing.
But "artemisinin" has an official endorsement, so it must be recorded in ancient Chinese medical books.
In addition to traditional Chinese medicine, other parts of the world have their own medicine, or witch doctor.
Actually, according to the characteristics of this era, there is no need to set up a separate disease research center in the colony.
Many countries set up research institutes in the country and collect samples from all over the world.
The reason why Ernst took great effort to reproduce a research center in East Africa is mainly because of the fear in cognition.
In the previous life, the reputation of those infectious diseases in Africa was too powerful, AIDS, Ebola, Marburg... all had virus ceilings.
So Ernst is very cautious. If the virus samples from Africa are brought to Europe and cause huge losses...the consequences will be unimaginable, especially when it is finally found that Ernst fiddled with it, then there will be no place for Ernst in the world place.
Of course, this is a bit unfounded. There are special reasons why Africa was a hotbed of viruses in the previous life.
As the origin of human beings, Africa also retains the most diverse genes, which provides multiple possibilities for virus mutation.
Plus Africans, poor sanitation like drinking dirty water, eating raw meat...
There are other conditions that are conducive to the production of viruses, such as wars, poor medical conditions, etc. Only in previous lives can Africa become a hotbed of viruses.
As for the natural environment, South America, India and Africa are similar. It can be seen that the environment is not the main reason.
Moreover, the East African colony opened up by Ernst itself was responsible for the task of driving away the local race, so that the genetic diversity of the local race was reduced.
At the same time, sanitation was improved in the colony, and wild animals (especially primates) near the place of residence were cleaned up to further reduce the breeding and spread of viruses and diseases.
With the expansion of the East African colony, it will definitely affect the pattern of the entire Africa in the future. It is hard to say whether the frightening viruses in the previous life will be produced.
For example, AIDS, which originated in Congo (Kinshasa) and appeared around the middle and late 20th century.
It's still early! According to the speed of the expansion of the East African colony and the current expansion goals, sooner or later the East African colony will take over the Mitumba Mountains in the west and the plateau area in the south of the Congo.
These are places where the tropical grasslands and tropical rainforests meet, suitable for agricultural development. In the previous life, Rwanda occupied part of Congo's land in the Mitumba Mountains.
Whether the entire Congo will be captured, Ernst has not yet considered it. After all, the tropical rainforest is really difficult to develop, and with the help of the rainforest, the indigenous people there are not easy to drive away.
However, when the Northwest Territory is captured, there will definitely be aboriginals fleeing westward to the Congo, and will enter Zambia in the future. The kingdom there is also facing the fate of being driven into the Congo rainforest by the East African colonies.
But the rainforest is not a place where people can live. Most of the Congolese in their previous lives settled along the edge of the Congo Basin.
If they want to feed so many people, they can only continue to flee north, to the Central African grasslands, or to the West African strip.
Anyway, the Congo area is definitely different from the previous life. It is hard to say whether AIDS and other diseases will appear.
However, Ernst's concerns are not unreasonable. The Marburg virus in his previous life was discovered in the Marburg laboratory of the Federal Republic of Germany, so it is necessary to establish a separate research center in East Africa.
Marburg This virus originated in monkeys in Uganda and Kenya, which is currently the territory of East Africa.
So, at present, Ernst’s extermination of primates in East Africa still makes some sense.
We must know that this is the 19th century, and the medical conditions will only be worse than in 1967 (the Marburg virus was discovered). It is safer to choose the direct physical elimination method. .
(end of this chapter)