MicroMysteries Podcast

Tuberculosis: The White Plague’s Long Shadow


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Tuberculosis—once known as the "White Plague"—was one of the deadliest and most misunderstood diseases in history. In this episode of Micro Mysteries, we explore how TB haunted 19th-century cities, inspired tragic art and literature, and was wrongly seen as a "romantic illness." But behind the myth was a slow-moving, stealthy microbe: Mycobacterium tuberculosis—also known as Koch's bacillus.

🎙️ Discover how Robert Koch’s groundbreaking identification of the bacterium changed everything, how the BCG vaccine and streptomycin gave us powerful tools to fight back, and why drug-resistant TB remains a serious global threat today.

🔬 Join us for a journey through science, history, and humanity’s ongoing battle with one of its oldest microbial foes.

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MicroMysteries PodcastBy Jackie Galbert