One Scientist’s Bet Helped to Treat Diabetes
In 1899, Dr. Oskar Minkowski ran into his colleague Josef von Mering at the university library. The two got into a debate over the pancreas. They disagreed if someone could survive without their pancreas or not. Dr. Minkowski believed so strongly that people could survive without it, that he removed his dog’s pancreas. At first, the dog appeared to be fine. But then Minkowski realized that flies were starting to surround his dog’s pee when he took him for a walk. After studying the urine, he realized that it was now full of sugar, and the dog had become a diabetic. Because of this, scientists were able to realize that the pancreas secretes insulin.