Sabin, << SAY bihn, >> Albert Bruce (1906-1993), an American medical researcher, developed the oral polio vaccine. The Sabin vaccine consists of weakened forms of the viruses that cause polio. It protects the body against polio without causing the disease, except in extremely rare cases. See Poliomyelitis.
Sabin developed the vaccine in the late 1950’s, and physicians in the United States began to use it in 1961. The earlier vaccine against polio, developed by the American research scientist Jonas E. Salk in 1954, had to be given by injection. The Sabin vaccine is easier to give, and its effects last longer. The widespread use of both types of vaccines has nearly eliminated polio in many regions of the world. Sabin also developed vaccines against other virus diseases, including encephalitis and dengue. In addition, he investigated possible links between viruses and some forms of cancer.
Sabin was born on Aug. 26, 1906, in Bialystok, Poland. His family settled in the United States in 1921. Sabin became a U.S. citizen in 1930. He graduated from the New York University College of Medicine in 1931. Sabin served on the staffs of many medical institutions, including the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and the Medical University of South Carolina. He received many awards for his research. He died on March 3, 1993.
