Centrich Sureda, Mercè

Revistes Catalanes amb Accés Obert

The creation of the Municipal Laboratory of Barcelona was
the fruit of the efforts of a group of people who, not only
aware of the scientific and social progress of their period,
but also with great insight, laid the foundations of twentieth
century Barcelona. 
From the second half of the nineteenth century, Catalonia
enjoyed a period of economic growth that, together with the
introduction of individual hygiene and disease control, ac-
counted for the increase in population. As a result, between
1850 and 1860, several structural changes took place in the
former society, such as the rapprochement between coastal
and inland Catalonia. The economy, formerly based on vine-
yard agriculture and the colonial export trade, spread like
tentacles throughout Spain, following the paths drawn by the
recently constructed rail network. Industry was strongly
favoured by the arrival of capital from the sale of certain
businesses in the old Spanish colonies of America. The
Catalan generation which arose during the demographic
boom halfway through the nineteenth century, referred to as
the Renaixença by Vicens Vives, took its place in public life
between 1868 and 1876.
The citizens of Barcelona at this time started to complain
about the constraints of the old city and the poor town plan-
ning and lack of monuments in the new areas, which led to
the official bodies and authorities receiving plans for new
projects every day. 
During the time Rius i Taulet was Mayor, the plans for the Eix-
ample were implemented. The city wall was demolished and
the Passatge Colom was built in its place. Three of the main
roads of the Eixample were completed: Gran Via de les Corts
Catalanes, Rambla de Catalunya and Carrer Aragó. Moreover,
the motion to annexe neighbouring towns was approved.
In 1885, Rius i Taulet became interested in a plan, drawn
up by a group of businessmen, to hold a world trade fair in
Barcelona. Despite the crisis that took place during the
preparation of the fair, Rius i Taulet went ahead, against
public opinion.
At that time, Jaume Ferran i Clua, a physician from Tor-
tosa, proposed to Rius i Taulet the creation of a Laboratory
to counteract rabies by applying the vaccine discovered by
Pasteur at no cost. The awareness of the success of Pasteur,
the proximity of the fair, the proposal of Dr. Ferran and the in-
tervention of Dr. Claramunt i Furest led the «Comissió de
Governació» to decide, on the second of November 1886, to
create a much more ambitious Microbiological Institution
than that proposed by Ferran. 
This new decision was also encouraged by professional
health groups, who had often complained about the indiffer-
ence of the Catalan and Spanish authorities towards the new
experimental microbiological studies. 
There were great epidemic outbreaks during the nine-
teenth century, especially of tuberculosis. Poverty and a
poor diet favoured transmission. The population doubled in
25 years, which had a detrimental effect on the precarious
state of urban hygiene at that time.
Dr. Claramunt, probably supported by Dr. Ferran, de-
manded an institution for microbiological studies from the
City Council, which «had always stood out for its achieve-
ments». 
The project was favourably received by the Mayor, who,
on the 5th of January 1887, appointed Ferran as official di-
rector of the future «Laboratorio Microbiológico Municipal»
(LMM), a position he took up ten days later, as stated in the
diploma placed in the Fundació Museu d’Història de la
Medicina de Catalunya of Barcelona. The Real Academia
de Medicina y Cirugía of Barcelona gave its approval and
Dr. Pasteur was informed of the aims of the City Council,
the creation of the LMM and the name of the director. He
soon replied with a letter of congratulation on all these deci-
sions. 
Once the infrastructure of the LMM was established, the
scientific studies began. On the 17th of March 1887, the first
rabies vaccine of Spain was applied, using Pasteur’s
method, and, as recorded in the book of vaccines deposited
in the museum of the LMB, the patients came from all over
Spain. Among them, we can highlight Dr. Claramunt and
Pau Casals (who was 9 years old).
At the end of 1886, the death of several Russians bitten by
wolves led to a savage campaign against the vaccines of
Pasteur. As a result, Ferran adapted Pasteur’s primitive
method to a very intensive treatment that consisted of: 
1. the use of a viral seriate culture for scarifications
2. a single vaccine
3. replacement of all the medullae attenuated by desicca-
tion by a single emulsion of boiled fresh brain 
4. reduction of the treatment to 5 days and 20 injections. 
Between 1887 and 1892, the LMM contributed to the
knowledge of prophylaxis of typhoid fever and prepared a
fresh vaccine against smallpox from brains infected by
horsepox using Jenner’s method. It also undertook the study
CONTRIBUTIONS to SCIENCE, 1 (3): 381-382 (2000)
Institut d’Estudis Catalans, Barcelona
MUNICIPAL LABORATORY OF BARCELONA*
* Mercè Centrich. Laboratori Municipal de Barcelona. Pl. Sal-
vador Riera, 5. 08041 Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain).
382 Mercè Centrich
of tuberculosis, a disease of great morbi-mortality in
Barcelona at the end of the 19th century.
To confront the social health situation of Barcelona, the
Council set up the Institut d’Higiene Urbana Municipal in
1891, led by Lluís Comenge i Ferrer, who is regarded as the
father of epidemiology and the history of Medicine. 
Comenge is responsible for the initiative and evolution of
the Servei Higiènic of Barcelona, the introduction of the first
household disinfections and the study of urban infective foci.
His model of urban hygiene was adopted by many foreign
cities.
At the end of 1894, Ferran obtained diphtheria serum from
immunised horse serum using Belwing-Roux’s method. The
treatment was first applied in the Hospital de Caritat of
Cartagena and had fewer side effects than that of his col-
leagues. 
Among the last contributions of Ferran as head of the
LMM, we can highlight the vaccine against the bubonic
plague, which proved to be much more efficient than that of
Haffkine, as demonstrated in the Laboratory of Oporto be-
fore an international commission.
After a series of events that have never been clarified,
Ferran was removed from the LMM. In 1906, Ramon Turró
was appointed director and a new approach to scientific re-
search began. On the 30th of March of the same year, the
Comisión de Gobernación decreed the unification of the
LMM and the «Instituto de Reconocimiento de las sustan-
cias alimenticias», led by Dr. Calvet, in a single institution
currently known as the Laboratori Municipal de Barcelona.
In 1909, the chemical and bacteriological sections were ex-
panded. Under Ferran, the LMM was admired worldwide,
but Turró achieved even more important successes in im-
munology. 
Pi i Sunyer made the first contributions to the study of
trophic sensitivity. González explored the mechanisms that
regulate and determine anaphylaxis. The studies carried out
by Armengué on the antigenicity of lipids were also valuable,
as were those of Alomar and Estades, who discovered the
volatile toxins of Kock’s bacillus. Pere Domingo developed
new techniques for staining this bacillus and showed the
presence of Negri bodies in rabic brains. Vidal Munné stud-
ied the difference between Bang’s bacillus and Brucella
Melitensis and developed a new vaccine against brom.. The
LMM was the site of many scientific achievements despite
the poor economic support of the municipal authorities.
The LM stood out not only for its success in research, but
also for the control of the frequent epidemic outbreaks that
shook the city. Shortly after Turró’s arrival in 1906, bubonic
plague was declared in the recently integrated town of Sant
Martí de Provençals. The prompt action of Comenge saved
many lives.
In 1909, the first analysis of non-drinking waters was per-
formed, while the Bacteriologic section also became in-
volved in the analysis of oysters, meat and milk. 
The skill of the LM technicians was demonstrated in 1911,
when they isolated the cholera microbe from the waters of El
Vendrell (Tarragona). A catastrophic typhous plague, which
had long been predicted by Turró, who believed it to be as-
sociated with the waters of Montcada, took place in 1914. Al-
though several politicians and academicians agreed that the
waters were responsible, the outbreak only ceased when
their use was forbidden, after the situation had worsened. 
In 1923, Calmette, who, together with Guerin, had devel-
oped a BCG tuberculosis treatment two years earlier, came
to Barcelona and kindly provided a culture with his vaccina-
tion strain. The LM set up a section to prepare the BCG. In
1994, it stopped working because of the importation of for-
eign vaccines. 
There was a project for the creation of a research institu-
tion that would be led by Duran i Reynals and supported by
Rockefeller i Roviralta. The former went to New York to pre-
pare everything but the Civil War frustrated his attempts. 
Before the Spanish Civil War, the LM and the Universitat
Autònoma de Barcelona collaborated on Microbiology
classes. These courses were not merely theoretical but also
involved practical classes in all the laboratories and ser-
vices. 
If we omit the 1936-1939 period, which was a disaster for
the LM, several researchers then took refuge in the «Labora-
torio Experimental de Terapèutica Immunològica» to work
on the preparation of penicillin and the first human assay
was performed on an elderly diabetic who suffered from
septicemia caused by staphylococcus. Even though they
were supported by the Institut d’Acolliment, the researchers
never stopped attending the LM, because although its activ-
ity had ceased, the men and their desire to make their name
in the field of research remained.
In the sixties, the LM began to recover and it was orga-
nized into three departments: Nutrition, Hydrology and Bac-
teriology. The former organised several courses aimed at
Chemistry, Pharmacy and Medicine graduates, with empha-
sis on the educational aspects of the LM. 
The sensitivity of the population changed the orientation
of the LM, increased the chemical control of food, the analy-
sis of extraneous substances like pesticides and the study of
contamination by metals, polychlorate biphenyls, dioxins
and additives, which led the municipal sanitary authorities to
reorganise and modernise the old LM. 
The Microbiology Service in 1982 and the Chemical Ser-
vice in 1985 incorporated the environmental control of water
and food. As the disease had been totally eradicated, the
old Antirabies Service disappeared. 
In 1994, municipal policy proposed the construction of a
new building to meet the requirements of new techniques,
coming up to the expectations of its founders, who demand-
ed a laboratory worthy of Barcelona.
The LM is now one of the best in Spain and up to the same
standard as similar European laboratories, as confirmed in
the periodic meetings with foreign researchers. It is the only
laboratory that has passed the accreditation tests needed to
analyse samples, which require certification by official or-
ganisms in the EU and elsewhere. 


Municipal Laboratory of Barcelona

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Revistes Catalanes amb Accés Obert