| Date | 1895 |
| Author | Bordet |
| Contribution | Reported discovery of complement. |
| Reference | Brock (1961) |
| Notes | Reported discovery of a normal blood substance which can interact with antibody to cause immune reactions such as the killing or lysis of bacteria. The substance "complement" became the basis of a major type of immunodiagnosis. See 1893. More specifically, Bordet found that the lytic effect of cholera-immune serum on cholera germs could be made much stronger by the addition of a small amount of normal serum (which could be cell-free). See 1895 Metchnikoff. See English translation in Brock 1961. See 1894 Pfeiffer. |
| Category | Immunology |
| Pathogen Class | Bacteria |
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