Jonas Salk
                     JONAS 
SALK
INTRODUCTION
Jonas Salk was an American physician and 
medical researcher who developed the first safe 
and effective vaccine for polio.
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WHO WAS JONAS 
S ALK?
Jonas Salk was one of the leading scientists of the 
twentieth century and the creator of the first polio 
vaccine. 
In 1942 at the University of Michigan School of Public 
Health, Salk became part of a group that was 
working to develop a vaccine against the flu.
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RESEARCH ON 
POL IO
In 1947, he became head of the Virus Research Lab 
at the University of Pittsburgh. 
At Pittsburgh he began research on polio. On April 12, 
1955, the vaccine was released for use in the United 
States. He established the Salk Institute for Biological 
Studies in 1963.
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EARLY L IFE
Born on October 28, 1914, Jonas Salk grew up poor in 
New York City, where his father worked in the 
garment district. Education was very important to his 
parents, and they encouraged him to apply himself 
to his studies.
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EDUCATION
After graduating from high school, Salk attended the 
City College of New York, where he earned a 
bachelor's degree in science. He went on to earn his 
M.D. from New York University in 1939. 
Salk interned at Mount Sinai Hospital for two years 
and then earned a fellowship to University of 
Michigan, where he studied flu viruses with Dr. 
Thomas Francis Jr.
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POL IO VACCINE
In 1947, Salk took a position at University of 
Pittsburgh, where he began conducting research on 
polio, also known as infantile paralysis. 
By 1951, Salk had determined that there were three 
distinct types of polio viruses and was able to 
develop a "killed virus" vaccine for the disease.
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PREL IMINARY 
TEST ING OF THE 
POL IO
Preliminary testing of the polio vaccine began in 
1952 - the shot given mostly to children. National 
testing expanded over the next two years, making it 
one of the largest clinical trials in medical history. 
Roughly 1.8 million children were given the vaccine 
during the test phase.
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REMARKABLE 
IMPACT OF  VACCINE
In its first few years, the vaccine had a remarkable 
impact on the number of new cases of polio reported. 
There were more than 57,000 cases in the United 
States in 1952, according to the College of Physicians 
of Philadelphia.
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L ATER YEARS
Salk launched his own research organization known 
as the Salk Center for Biological Studies in 1963. 
There he and other scientists focused their efforts on 
such diseases as multiple sclerosis and cancer. 
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DEATH
Salk died of heart failure on June 23, 1995, at his 
home in La Jolla, California. With his groundbreaking 
vaccine, Salk had earned his place in medical history. 
He will always be remembered as the man who 
stopped polio.
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THANK YOU
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