Question

Compton's Encyclopedia(50 points)

Jonas Salk (1914-1995). For the first half of the 20th century, poliomyelitis, also known as infantile paralysis, was one of the most dreaded diseases to attack young people. By 1955 American physician and researcher Jonas Salk had developed a vaccine that almost eradicated the disease in the United States and other developed countries.

Jonas Edward Salk was born in New York City on October 28, 1914. He graduated from the City College of New York in 1934 and earned his doctorate in medicine from New York University's College of Medicine in 1939. While in medical school he had worked with Thomas Francis Jr. on killed-virus immunology studies. In 1942 he joined a group at the University of Michigan working on a vaccine against influenza. The vaccine was perfected in 1953.

In 1947 Salk became associate professor of bacteriology and head of the Virus Research Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. There he began working on the polio vaccine. Three viruses caused polio, and a vaccine had to be effective against all of them. By 1952 Salk had developed such a vaccine and conducted field tests on children.

On April 12, 1955, the vaccine was released for use in the United States. In 1957 Salk was named professor of experimental medicine at Pittsburgh, and in 1963 he went to San Diego as head of the Institute (later named the Salk Institute) for Biological Studies. In 1977 Salk was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He died on June 23, 1995, in La Jolla, California.

Answer the following question based on the Compton's Encyclopedia reading:

What was one of the challenges Dr. Salk faced in his attempt to create a polio vaccine?


1. Dr. Salk did not have enough money to pay for his research and supplies.
2. Dr. Salk had to create one vaccine that was effective against three different viruses.
3. Dr. Salk had to convince government officials to allow him to test the vaccine.
4. Dr. Salk's idea for a vaccine was not supported by other scientists and physicians.

Answer 1

1: Dr. Salk had to create one vaccine that was effective against three different viruses.

Step-by-step explanation:

Dr. Salk faced the challenge of developing a polio vaccine that was effective against all three poliovirus strains causing the disease. Each strain had different characteristics and required a vaccine that could protect against all of them to ensure comprehensive protection. This complexity in creating a vaccine that targeted multiple viral strains was one of the significant challenges Dr. Salk had to overcome in his efforts to combat polio.

I hope this helped!

~~~Harsha~~~