Georg Theodor August Gaffky (1850-1918) was a bacteriologist best known for his 1884 discovery of the bacillus responsible for typhoid. Trained as a physician at Berlin's Friedrich Wilhelms Universitaet, Gaffky went on to work as an assistant to Robert Koch in the latter's Berlin laboratory. While working for Koch, he confirmed Eberth's identification of a rod-like bacillus ("Eberthella typhi") in a case of typhoid; the bacillus became known as "Gaffky-Eberth bacillus" and subsequently as Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi in commemoration of Dr. D.E. Salmon (see Theobald Smith).
In 1878, Gaffky visited Egypt with Koch and others in order to observe a cholera outbreak.
In 1904, Gaffky succeeded Koch as Director of the Berlin Institute for Infectious Diseases, a post he held until 1913.
Created 25 January 2017
Last modified 16 February 2023