Dora Lush

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Dora Lush
Dora Lush portrait.jpg
Born(1910-07-31)31 July 1910
Hawthorn, Victoria
Died20 May 1943(1943-05-20) (aged 32)
Melbourne, Victoria
CitizenshipAustralia
Alma materUniversity of Melbourne (B.Sc. 1932, M.Sc. 1934 )
Scientific career
FieldsBacteriology
InstitutionsNational Institute for Medical Research
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research

Dora Mary Lush (31 July 1910 – 20 May 1943) was an Australian bacteriologist. She died after accidentally pricking her finger with a needle which contained lethal scrub typhus while attempting to develop a vaccine for the disease.

Early life[]

Lush was born in Hawthorn, Victoria, the daughter of John Fullarton Lush, a clerk, and his wife Dora Emma Louisa née Puttmann.[1] She had two brothers, who served as officers in the Second AIF and RAAF during World War II.[2] She was educated at Fintona Girls' School[3] and the University of Melbourne, gaining a B.Sc. in 1932 and an M.Sc. in 1934.[1] She was an active sportswoman, being selected for the University of Melbourne's women's basketball team.[4]

Research[]

Lush worked at the National Institute for Medical Research, London, from early in 1939. She returned to Australia. Her work on the influenza virus was praised in 1940.[5] She worked with Frank Macfarlane Burnet at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne on a scrub typhus vaccine in 1942,[1] as scrub typhus was a serious health risk to Australian soldiers engaged in jungle warfare in the New Guinea Campaign during World War II.[6][7]

Death[]

On 27 April 1943 Lush accidentally pricked her finger with a needle containing scrub typhus while inoculating a mouse. There was no effective treatment at the time for this often fatal disease. She died four weeks later, on 20 May 1943.[2] Before her death she insisted that blood samples be taken from her to aid research.[1][7] Unfortunately, the researchers were ultimately unable to develop a satisfactory vaccine.[8]

Lush was cremated at Springvale Crematorium on 22 May 1943.[3] A memorial tablet was placed outside the laboratory where she worked at Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.[9]

Legacy[]

The National Health and Medical Research Council now offers postgraduate scholarships named in her honour.[10][11]

Lush Place in the Canberra suburb of Chisholm is named in her honour.[12]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Rasmussen, Carolyn. "Lush, Dora Mary (1910–1943)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Melbourne University Press. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 27 July 2014 – via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
  2. ^ a b "Death from Scrub Fever". Kalgoorlie Miner. 49 (12, 754). Western Australia. 25 May 1943. p. 1. Retrieved 8 June 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ a b "Lost Life in Cause of Science". The Argus. Melbourne. 21 May 1943.
  4. ^ "Return of Hockey Team". The Australasian (Melbourne, Vic. : 1864 – 1946). Melbourne. 15 August 1931. p. 50. Retrieved 18 August 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^ "U.S. Tribute To Australian Doctors' Work". The News. Adelaide. 21 October 1940. p. 4. Retrieved 18 August 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "A Science Note: About the Unpleasant New Guinea Bush "Mokka"". The Australasian. Melbourne. 24 June 1944. p. 13. Retrieved 18 August 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ a b "X-Ray Martyr Left Only £13 Estate". The Worker. Brisbane. 24 May 1943. p. 3. Retrieved 18 August 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ Walker, Allan S. (1952). Clinical Problems of War. Australia in the War of 1939–1945 Series 5 – Medical. Canberra: Australian War Memorial. pp. 192–193, 666. OCLC 8324033.
  9. ^ "Tropical Diseases: Miss D. Lush honoured". The West Australian. 61 (18, 367). Western Australia. 25 May 1945. p. 10. Retrieved 8 June 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ^ "Miss Dora Lush". Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  11. ^ "Dora Lush, the Australian scientist and war hero you've never heard about". Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  12. ^ "Schedule 'B' National Memorials Ordinance 1928–1972 Street Nomenclature List of Additional Names with Reference to Origin: Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. Special (National: 1977–2012) – 8 Feb 1978". Trove. p. 13. Retrieved 2 April 2020.

External links[]

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