The Laboratory Branch was first created in 1905 and formed the nucleus of the Georgia Department of Public Health in the early days of the department's existence. The function of the laboratory is to examine specimens for the detection of communicable diseases, especially tuberculosis, diphtheria and hookworm. Later the laboratory examined specimens to detect gonorrhea, malaria, intestinal parasites, rabies and other diseases. By the 1950's the laboratory was composed of the following sections: (1) Bacteriology (2) Biochemistry (3) Environmental Microbiology (4) Serology (5) Tuberculosis-Parasitology and (6) Virology. The number of specimens the laboratory examines each year currently is rather large and includes the following types for each section: (1) Bacteriology: feces-urine, blood, spinal fluid, animal origin, food poisoning, fungus and agglutination (2) Biochemistry: phenylketonuria and blood glucose (3) Environmental Microbiology: milk and cream, shellfish, food (4) Serology: syphilis and blood (5) Tuberculosis-Parasitology: tuberculosis, diphtheria, genito-urinary organisms, malaria, mycobacteria, intestinal parasites and throat infections (6) Virology: influenza, rabies, rubella and infectious mononucleosis. The Laboratory Branch has regional laboratories at Albany, Macon and Waycross to assist physicians in those areas to detect communicable diseases. The branch also works with the laboratories at Central State and Northwest Georgia Regional (formerly Battey State) Hospitals.