Albert Neisser

Albert Neisser (1855-1916) was a German physician and microbiologist born in Schweidnitz, Prussia, who studied medicine at the University of Breslau and later became a professor there, heading its dermatology hospital. In 1879 he identified the bacterium responsible for gonorrhea, later named Neisseria gonorrhoeae in his honor, establishing its infectious cause. He was also a co-discoverer of the bacterium responsible for leprosy. As a specialist in sexually transmitted diseases, he collaborated with Paul Ehrlich and August von Wassermann on syphilis research and the development of diagnostic testing for the disease.