Martinus Willem Beijerinck (March 16, 1851 - January 1, 1931) was a Dutch microbiologist. He was born in Amsterdam.
Beijerinck was Professor at the Polytechnical Institute of Delft (from 1895). He is most famous for his discovery of viruses, by proving in filtration experiments that the tobacco mosaic disease is caused by something smaller than a bacterium. He named that new pathogen virus. He won the Leeuwenhoek Medal in 1905.
He was also known for his ascetic lifestyle and his view of science and marriage being incompatible.
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