Françoise Barré-Sinoussi
French virologist, received #NobelPrize in Physiology & Medicine in 2008 for discovering #HIV as the cause of #AIDS.
Featuring artwork by Miler Ximeno Lopez & words by Dr. Sumbul Jawed Khan, Sci-Illustrate Stories. Set in motion by Dr. Radhika Patnala.
Few disease researches have progressed at a fast pace from the point of their 1st detection, to becoming a global epidemic, to identification of its cause, to its treatment, as has the research in AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome). This was possible in part due to the incredible discovery made by Françoise Barré-Sinoussi (1947-present), a French virologist, who has worked on AIDS research for over 35 yrs.
Françoise was born and raised in Paris in a family of modest means, and adored her countryside vacations that piqued her curiosity in the natural world. Being interested in science from an early age, she pursued research & was awarded Ph. D. in 1974 from the University of Paris. She met her future husband during her Ph. D., whom she later married in 1978. After a short post-doc at the National Institute of Health in U.S. to join Luc Montagnier’s lab at the Pasteur Institute, Paris, to study retroviruses in cancer.
Her work on AIDS started by accident in 1982, when distraught clinicians came asking for help to identify a deadly virus that was affecting mostly homosexual men. Françoise & her team identified the cause as retrovirus- RNA viruses that can integrate into the host DNA & could remain undetected for years. Their discovery was published in the journal Science in 1983, & the virus was later named as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).
She hardly recognized the impact of her discovery, until many more patients were tested positive for the virus & they started contacting her for a cure. Despite not being a doctor, she met with patients & was distressed from being unable to save their lives. She was so psychologically affected by their anguish that when a treatment for AIDS, called Antiretroviral Therapy (ART), was finally developed in 1996 Françoise went into depression. She retired from public life for a year to be able to cope with the realities of fight against the fatal disease.
She started her own lab in 1988 at Louis Pasteur Institute & continued research on HIV till her retirement in 2017. She has published 240 papers & has 17 patents.
Françoise & Luc Montagnier jointly received the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering HIV as the cause for AIDS. Among various honors she was awarded the highest civilian French award, the National Order of the Legion of Honor.
Her historical discovery solved one of the greatest medical mysteries of 20th century, & helped transform AIDS from a raging pandemic in the 80’s to a manageable chronic disease.
She is a vocal activist, & was the President of International AIDS Society. She has travelled extensively to Africa & South-Asian countries to establish centers for AIDS research & treatment. She continues the fight by speaking against the stigma attached to patients, by advocating for greater political involvement & by spreading awareness about the disease.
She is compassionate about the sufferings of the affected patients & wants people to be aware that AIDS still affects millions globally. She is hopeful that a cure to the disease will be discovered one day & believes that-
“There is always hope in life, because there is always hope in science.”
Sources:
About the author:
DR. SUMBUL JAWED KHAN
Content Editor, Women In Science, Sci-Illustrate Stories.
Dr. Khan received her Ph. D. in Biological Sciences and Bioengineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, where she studied the role of microenvironment in cancer progression and tumor formation. During her post-doctoral research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Dr. Khan investigated the gene regulatory networks that are important for tissue regeneration after damage or wounding. Dr. Khan is committed to science outreach activities, to make scientific research understandable and relatable to the non-scientific community. She believes it is essential to inspire young people to apply scientific methods to tackle the current challenges faced by humanity.
About the artist:
MILER XIMENA LÓPEZ
Contributing Artist Women in Science, Sci-Illustrate stories
Expressing myself graphically has always been a source of great satisfaction for me. With my work, I can provide many things to others in different positive ways, as well as get a lot in return, because in every goal achieved, in every process, there is a lot to learn.
About the Series:
Not enough can be said about the amazing Women in Science who did and continue to do their part in moving the world forward.
Every month, through the artwork & words of the Sci-Illustrate team, we will bring to you profiles of women who touched our hearts (and brains) with their scientific works, and of many more who currently hold the flag high in their own fields!
— Dr. Radhika Patnala, Series Director
