Who discovered the Polio vaccine ?

Dr. Jonas Salk is credited with discovering and developing the first successful polio vaccine in the early 1950s [1]. His vaccine, known as the Inactivated Poliovirus Vaccine (IPV), utilized a 'killed' virus to induce immunity without the risk of infection [2]. National testing on approximately one million children, known as 'Polio Pioneers,' began in 1954, and the vaccine was declared safe and effective on April 12, 1955 [2]. Following its widespread distribution, polio cases in the United States dropped significantly from over 45,000 annually to just 910 by 1962 [2]. While Albert Sabin later developed an oral live-attenuated vaccine, Salk's breakthrough was the first to provide a defense against the paralytic disease. Other options like Louis Pasteur are known for the rabies vaccine, Eli Whitney for the cotton gin, and Konrad Zuse for early computers.

Sources

1. [1] https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/research/online-documents/jonas-salk-and-polio-vaccine
2. [2] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10803505/