The mysterious story of tomatoes 🍅 & cigarettes 🚬
An interesting scientific story discussed by Kenneth M. Smith (1892-1981) who is considered to be one of the pioneers of the scientific field of ‘Virology’. Long thread, Enjoy the Sunday reading 😀1/n
In his 1943 book, Smith wrote about a story of two American tobacco farmers, one of whom was much troubled by outbreaks of tobacco mosaic disease in his crops, while the other managed to keep his plants fairly clear of the trouble. 2/n
Furthermore, the first farmer noticed that the infection tended to occur in a straight line (tobacco mosaic is very infectious disease & it is not insect-transmitted). So, Smith assumed that the disease seemed to follow the movements of the farmworkers who tended the plants. 3/n
It seemed likely, therefore, that they were the transmitting agents. Closer inquiry into the personal habits of the farmworkers revealed the fact that several of them indulged in the practice of chewing tobacco, & herein, lies the clue to the mosaic infection. 4/n
The virus of tobacco mosaic is one of the most stable & resistant viruses known, & some brands of chewing tobacco are not subjected in the curing process to sufficiently high temperatures or other treatments which would destroy the virus. 5/n