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First to Find Cause of AIDS

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) burst onto the scene in the early 1980s and quickly captured the attention of the medical community and the world. They knew they were up against a deadly killer, but had no idea what caused this horrible disease. A French physician, Willy Rozenbaum, had speculated that a retrovirus might be responsible for the disease.  A retrovirus is a name for a particular type of virus and it is hard to detect until it has already taken up residence in someone or infected them.  Rozenbaum turned to Luc Montagnier, an expert on retroviruses, for help. Montagnier and his team confirmed that the underlying cause of AIDS was a retrovirus, which they initially named lymphadenopathy-associated virus (LAV). This was later renamed HIV, by international agreement. Montagnier's discovery led to the development of a laboratory test to detect the presence of HIV in blood samples.

Human immunodeficiency virus originated in West Africa, with the first confirmed case being recorded in 1959. The virus slowly spread across Africa and then, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, exploded throughout other parts of the world. HIV is the underlying cause of AIDS, a disease that attacks the immune system, and is passed from person to person through contact with bodily fluids. As AIDS progresses, individuals become less able to ward off infections and fall prey to a variety of opportunistic diseases. Among the common diseases initially associated with AIDS was Kaposi's sarcoma, a cancer that can affect both internal organs and the skin. Victims also began showing up at emergency rooms with a variety of flu-like symptoms and an unusual form of pneumonia known as pneumocystis. Health officials initially thought the disease was limited to homosexual men living in large metropolitan areas. But, they quickly discovered that both hemophiliacs and heterosexual intravenous drug users were also being infected. Not knowing the underlying cause of AIDS sent a panic throughout communities. There was a great deal of confusion about how AIDS was spread and whether it could be prevented. And, most significantly, there was no way to detect or treat it. Montagnier's discovery of HIV came at a critical time, as world health authorities struggled to contain the spread of AIDS. Based on his findings, blood tests were developed to detect the presence of HIV in blood samples. This led to direct identification of AIDS patients, who then could be treated. It also led to a means to test blood donations for the HIV virus. This testing of blood supplies has reduced the risk of acquiring HIV through a blood donation to one in 2.5 million in the United States.

Rozenbaum had a theory about the origin of HIV, but he needed Montagnier's expertise to take his theory to the next level. So, Rozenbaum sent a tissue sample taken from one of his patients to Montagnier at the Pasteur Institute. Montagnier and his team took the lymph node tissue, dissected it, and made a culture from it. They continued to work with the culture over several weeks, looking for an enzyme called reverse transcriptase. This presence of this enzyme would confirm they were dealing with a retrovirus. A retrovirus, essentially, uses the genetic code of viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) to form deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). This allows the original virus, now housed within the DNA, to become permanently established in the host organism. Once the virus is housed within the host's cells, it can then sustain itself and multiply throughout the host's system. In the case of HIV, this multiplication of abnormal cells sets in motion the disabling of the immune system. Montagnier was right - he and his team found the enzyme that proved they were dealing with a retrovirus. This then allowed them to isolate the virus, which they called lymphadenopathy-associated virus (LAV). Though later renamed HIV by international agreement, it was Montagnier's discovery that provided the critical breakthrough in the fight against this deadly disease. His effort led directly to the development of a test to detect the presence of HIV in the blood. It also led to widespread testing of blood donations and a vastly safer worldwide blood supply.

Montagnier developed an interest in science at an early age. His father, an accountant, was a bit of an amateur scientist and often conducted experiments in their home's basement on Sundays. Montagnier relished working in the makeshift laboratory and, at the age of 14, began conducting his own experiments with nitroglycerine.  Luckily, he didn’t blow anything up and lived to help millions of people.

Introduction by Tim Anderson

Table of Contents

Key Insight

Key Experiments or Research

Quotes by the Scientist

Quotes About the Scientist

Anecdotes

Fun Trivia About the Science

Personal Information

Scientific Discovery Timeline

Recommended Books About the Science

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Awards

Major Academic Papers Written by the Scientist

Curriculum Vitae

Sources/References