title: "Life in a germ-free world": isolating life from the laboratory animal to the bubble boy.
abstract: This article examines a specific technology, the germ-free "isolator," tracing its development across three sites: (1) the laboratory for the production of standard laboratory animals, (2) agriculture for the efficient production of farm animals, and (3) the hospital for the control and prevention of cross-infection and the protection of individuals from infection. Germ-free technology traveled across the laboratory sciences, clinical and veterinary medicine, and industry, yet failed to become institutionalized outside the laboratory. That germ-free technology worked was not at issue. Working, however, was not enough. Examining the history of a technology that failed to find widespread application reveals the labor involved in aligning cultural, societal, and material factors necessary for successful medical innovation.
authors.affiliation: University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
authors.forename: Robert G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Kirk
mesh_terms: D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000266:history / Q000592:standards; D000818:Animals; D000830:Animals, Laboratory; D024803:Biomedical Enhancement / Q000266:history*; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005856:Germ-Free Life; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006799:Housing, Animal; D006801:Humans; D010357:Patient Isolators