Francoise Barre-Sinoussi

Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and her research partner Luc Montagnier shared the 2008 Nobel Prize for Medicine with Harald zur Hausen. Barré-Sinoussi and Montagnier discovered the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), that causes AIDS.¹

Fast Facts

1. Born: 1974, France²
2. Education: PhD in virology, Institut Pasteur²
3. Employed: Professor and director, Regulation of Retroviral Infections Unit, Virology Department, Insitut Pasteur, Paris^{1 2}
4. She is only the 7th woman to win a Nobel Prize¹
5. Their research led to the current understanding of HIV/AIDS and its antiretroviral treatment²
6. She received 2.5 million kronor (about $350,000)¹

Controversy

The award for HIV discovery mentions the contributions of Robert Gallo of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, but does not award him the prize, declaring Barre-Sinoussi and Montagnier the co-discoverers. The three have been locked in an ongoing battle over who discovered the virus since the 1980s³

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Related Pages on Mahalo

Harald zur Hausen | Luc Montagnier | HIV - Human Immunodeficiency Virus | AIDS - Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome | HIV Destroying Enzyme | AIDS South Africa | AIDS in Africa | AIDS Vaccine | Nobel Prize | Nobel Prize for Literature

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