Nobel Laureate Luc Montagnier, Who Co-Discovered HIV, Dies At 89

French virologist Luc Montagnier, who identified the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the infection behind AIDS, passed away at 89. The Nobel laureate had sparked the global search for the AIDS cure. He took his last breath on Tuesday, February 8, at a hospital in a suburb of Paris, LiveMint reported.

Montagnier was born on August 18, 1932, in Chabris, in Loire Valley, France. He scored distinctions until high school and was usually ahead of his classmates in all the activities. Montagnier held curiosity about scientific studies, following which he later set up a chemistry laboratory.

He completed his degrees in Science and Medicine in 1953 from the Universities of Poitiers and Paris.

He was an avid reader of popularised books of chemistry and physics, especially atomic physics. Observing his interests, he decided to research a carrier in human biology, but there was no such course available in Medicine or in Sciences.

He attended afternoon courses in botany, zoology and geology, which were the main disciplines of the degree course in Sciences. Fortunately, a new Botany teacher also held great scientific interest. He learnt about the basics of Biology, the DNA double helix, the structure of viruses, etc. This was the beginning of history.

Montagnier began his career as a research scientist in 1955 and earned a PhD in Virology from the University of Paris. Later, he joined the Pasteur Institute in Paris as a Professor and Head of the Viral Oncology Unit in 1972 and worked till 2000.

In the early 1980s, Montagnier, working at the Pasteur Institute with a team that included Barré-Sinoussi, identified the retrovirus that eventually became known as HIV.

In 1993, the scientist established the World Foundation for AIDS Research and Prevention. He later accepted a chair at Queens College, New York City, headed the Center for Molecular and Cellular Biology for three years.

Also Read: Kerala BJP Creates History, Nominates Transwoman To District Committee