Chester Emmons

Chester Wilson Emmons (August 21, 1900 – August 5, 1985) was an American scientist, who researched fungi that cause diseases. He was the first mycologist at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where for 31 years he served as head of its Medical Mycology Section.

After studying botany at Penn College and the host-parasite relationship of Ampelomyces quisqualis at Columbia University, he transferred to the School of Tropical Medicine in Puerto Rico, where he confirmed that Actinomyces bovis is present in the mouths of healthy people. In 1934, back at Columbia, he proposed that some fungi should be defined according to their structure, not the effects of the resulting fungal infection. He was the first to recognise coccidioidomycosis in desert rodents, and he established that soil is a natural reservoir for Histoplasma capsulatum, which flourishes when the soil is supplemented by bird, chicken and bat droppings. He proved an association between Cryptococcus neoformans and pigeon nesting sites, after being the first to isolate the fungus from its natural habitat. Emmons provided early evidence for the effectiveness of amphotericin B in treating of systemic fungal infections. His modified agar medium for fungal culture is sometimes referred to as Sabouraud agar, Emmons. In 1942, Emmons defined a new species Haplosporangium parvum, later reclassified into a separate genus and renamed Emmonsia.

In 1960, as president of the Mycological Society of America (MSA), he made the study of fungi the focus of his presidential address, in an effort to raise the profile of medical mycology. Emmons also taught medical students at George Washington University, and later taught medical mycology to physicians at the NIH's clinical centre. He contributed as an editor to several journals including the American Journal of Epidemiology, Antibiotics and Chemotherapy, Mycopathologia and Mycologia Applicata, Journal of Bacteriology, Mycologia, and Clinical Medicine. Shortly before his death, he had disclosed that he felt his biggest contribution was demonstrating that fungal infections were common and widespread, and that their causal organisms were everywhere.

Early life and education

Chester Wilson Emmons was born on August 21, 1900, in What Cheer, Iowa, to Wilson Thomas and Amy Penrose Emmons, was the eldest of their five children, and belonged to the Religious Society of Friends. He attended the Friends schools in Iowa and Ohio, where he also taught for some time.

Training Emmons left Iowa and moved to New York where he earned a Roberts fellowship at Columbia University under the supervision of professor Robert A. Harper, and studied the host-parasite relationship of Ampelomyces quisqualis, then known as Cicinnobolus desai. In 1936, Emmons became the first medical mycologist appointed by the US government, after the National Institutes of Health (NIH), then in Washington DC, was given permission to finance the post. They initially felt them to belong to the genera Coccidioides, but following culture they defined it as a new species Haplosporangium parvum, When its spores were inhaled, they increased in size from 2–4 μm to 40–500 μm in diameter. He also proved an association between Cryptococcus neoformans and pigeon nesting sites, after being the first to isolate the fungus from its natural habitat.

For 20 years from 1942, he taught medical students at George Washington University. In 1982, he received the MSA's distinguished mycologist award.

The American Academy of Microbiology, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the New York Academy of Sciences all elected him a fellow. The Association Mexicana Microbiologia made him an honorary member and the World Health Organization Expert Advisory Panel on Parasitic Diseases enrolled his expertise from 1960 to 1975.

Other roles He also held posts at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, the Vanderbilt Clinic in New York, and the Georgetown University School of Medicine. He contributed as an editor to several journals including the Abstracts of Mycology, American Journal of Epidemiology, Antibiotics and Chemotherapy, Mycopathologia and Mycologia Applicata, Journal of Bacteriology, Mycologia, and Clinical Medicine.

Personal and family In 1929, while working on his Ph.D., he met and married Florence Hall. They had five children: Helen, Richard, Donald, Elizabeth and Nancy.

Later life After retiring in 1966, Emmons and his wife first made a three-month stay in Peru, where they volunteered at a jungle hospital. They then returned to Arizona, where he took up the appointment of visiting professor at Arizona State University. In Arizona, he joined a rock club, where he learnt to cut and polish stones. In 1978 due deteriorating health, the couple moved to North Carolina.

Death and legacy Emmons died on August 5, 1985. Two years earlier he had disclosed to mycologist Michael W. McGinnis, that he felt his biggest contribution was demonstrating that fungal infections were common and widespread, and that their causal organisms were everywhere.

His modified agar medium for fungal culture is sometimes referred to as Sabouraud agar, Emmons. The fungal genus Emmonsia is named for him.

Selected publications Articles (Co-authored with L. L. Ashburn)

Books (Co-authored with Chapman H. Binford and John P. Utz)