Étienne-Émile Baulieu
Encyclopedia
Étienne-Émile Baulieu is a French biochemist
and endocrinologist who is best known for his research in the field of steroid hormone
s and their role in reproduction and aging.
, France
. His father, who died when he was four was Léon Blum, a physician, and an early specialist in diabetes. Baulieu changed his name during World War II when his family fled to the area near Grenoble and he engaged in the French resistance
. After the war he attended the Faculté de Médecine de Paris and became a doctor of medicine in 1955. He studied further under his mentor Max Fernand Jayle in the field of steroid hormone
s and obtained his PhD degree in 1963 at the Lycée Pasteur
, Faculté de Médecine and Faculté des Sciences in Paris.
In 1963 Baulieu was named director of INSERM, and in 1970 he became a Professor of Biochemistry
at the Faculty of Medicine of Bicêtro, affiliated with University of Paris
-South. Since 2004 Baulieu is a member of the French "Ethical Advisory Committee"
(Comité consultatif national d'éthique) for science and health. He also presides over the "Institute of Longevity and Aging" (Institut de la longévité et du vieillissement) In 2008, he started the Institut Professor Baulieu to foster research into healthy longevity
.
androgen
, was largely conjugated as a hydrophilic sulfate
, and described its metabolism and functions. He worked to uncover the production of estrogen
s by the placenta
during pregnancy and this led to the concept of DHEA being a "prohormone
". Upon the invitation of Seymour Lieberman Baulieu became visiting scientist at the Columbia University in 1961–1962, and during this time he met Gregory Pincus, the father of the "birth control pill". Baulieu then turned to more studies in contraception and in the regulation of fertility and pregnancy. He became a pioneer in the description of intracellular sex steroid receptors and identified major intracellular participants such as the heat shock protein
s. He worked on the progesterone receptor
and androgen receptor
. While steroid receptors are generally found within the cell, Baulieu identified a membrane receptor for a steroid hormone in Xenopus laevis.
are produced in the brain
and introduced the term "neurosteroids" in 1981. These steroids are active in the nervous system, help repair myelin
, protect the nervous system, and enhance memory. Such agents may prove to be useful in the maintenance of brain function during age, and Baulieu suggests that use of DHEA in the elderly may ameliorate certain age-associated deficits including memory loss and depressive mood. Baulieu conducts clinical research about the potential benefits of DHEA in the elderly population.
steroid that proved to be able to induce early abortion and became more effective in conjunction with misoprostol
. As a proponent of a nonsugical approach to abortion
Baulieu became an advocat RU468 even when the company withdrew from the product and propelled him into the limelight of the abortion debate
. As an anti-progesterone RU468 also has other potential such as in the treatment of certain conditions (breast cancer, brain cancer, endometriosis, diabetes, hypertension), and the anti-cortison activity he discovered may be useful to manage depression or Cushing's syndrome.
revolution", the fact that people are living longer, and its implications. As part of this he is investigating the potential of hormonal substitution such as DEAH to increase well-being in old age. The creation of the "Institute Baulieu" has started to address issues that are detrimental to health in people of age. Currently, the Institute is working on ways to decrease dependability problems of the elderly.
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
and endocrinologist who is best known for his research in the field of steroid hormone
Steroid hormone
A steroid hormone is a steroid that acts as a hormone. Steroid hormones can be grouped into five groups by the receptors to which they bind: glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, androgens, estrogens, and progestogens...
s and their role in reproduction and aging.
Biography
Baulieu was born Émile Blum in StrasbourgStrasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. His father, who died when he was four was Léon Blum, a physician, and an early specialist in diabetes. Baulieu changed his name during World War II when his family fled to the area near Grenoble and he engaged in the French resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
. After the war he attended the Faculté de Médecine de Paris and became a doctor of medicine in 1955. He studied further under his mentor Max Fernand Jayle in the field of steroid hormone
Steroid hormone
A steroid hormone is a steroid that acts as a hormone. Steroid hormones can be grouped into five groups by the receptors to which they bind: glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, androgens, estrogens, and progestogens...
s and obtained his PhD degree in 1963 at the Lycée Pasteur
Lycée Pasteur
The Lycée Pasteur is a French state-run secondary school in Neuilly-sur-Seine, on the outskirts of Paris. It accept students from collège through to classes préparatoires .Built in the grounds of the former chateau de Neuilly, the lycée is named in...
, Faculté de Médecine and Faculté des Sciences in Paris.
In 1963 Baulieu was named director of INSERM, and in 1970 he became a Professor of Biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
at the Faculty of Medicine of Bicêtro, affiliated with University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
-South. Since 2004 Baulieu is a member of the French "Ethical Advisory Committee"
Comité Consultatif National d'Ethique
The Comité Consultatif National d'Ethique is a French governmental advisory council on bioethics issues. It was created by a presidential decree of François Mitterrand in 1983....
(Comité consultatif national d'éthique) for science and health. He also presides over the "Institute of Longevity and Aging" (Institut de la longévité et du vieillissement) In 2008, he started the Institut Professor Baulieu to foster research into healthy longevity
Longevity
The word "longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography or known as "long life", especially when it concerns someone or something lasting longer than expected ....
.
Research
Baulieu has had an ongoing interest in dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA. In 1960 he demonstrated that DHEA was the main adrenalAdrenal gland
In mammals, the adrenal glands are endocrine glands that sit atop the kidneys; in humans, the right suprarenal gland is triangular shaped, while the left suprarenal gland is semilunar shaped...
androgen
Androgen
Androgen, also called androgenic hormone or testoid, is the generic term for any natural or synthetic compound, usually a steroid hormone, that stimulates or controls the development and maintenance of male characteristics in vertebrates by binding to androgen receptors...
, was largely conjugated as a hydrophilic sulfate
Sulfate
In inorganic chemistry, a sulfate is a salt of sulfuric acid.-Chemical properties:...
, and described its metabolism and functions. He worked to uncover the production of estrogen
Estrogen
Estrogens , oestrogens , or œstrogens, are a group of compounds named for their importance in the estrous cycle of humans and other animals. They are the primary female sex hormones. Natural estrogens are steroid hormones, while some synthetic ones are non-steroidal...
s by the placenta
Placenta
The placenta is an organ that connects the developing fetus to the uterine wall to allow nutrient uptake, waste elimination, and gas exchange via the mother's blood supply. "True" placentas are a defining characteristic of eutherian or "placental" mammals, but are also found in some snakes and...
during pregnancy and this led to the concept of DHEA being a "prohormone
Prohormone
A prohormone is a substance that is a precursor to a hormone, usually having minimal hormonal effect by itself. The term has been used in medical science since the middle of the 20th century. The primary function of a prohormone is to enhance the strength of the hormone that already occurs in the...
". Upon the invitation of Seymour Lieberman Baulieu became visiting scientist at the Columbia University in 1961–1962, and during this time he met Gregory Pincus, the father of the "birth control pill". Baulieu then turned to more studies in contraception and in the regulation of fertility and pregnancy. He became a pioneer in the description of intracellular sex steroid receptors and identified major intracellular participants such as the heat shock protein
Heat shock protein
Heat shock proteins are a class of functionally related proteins involved in the folding and unfolding of other proteins. Their expression is increased when cells are exposed to elevated temperatures or other stress. This increase in expression is transcriptionally regulated...
s. He worked on the progesterone receptor
Progesterone receptor
The progesterone receptor also known as NR3C3 , is an intracellular steroid receptor that specifically binds progesterone...
and androgen receptor
Androgen receptor
The androgen receptor , also known as NR3C4 , is a type of nuclear receptor that is activated by binding of either of the androgenic hormones testosterone or dihydrotestosterone in the cytoplasm and then translocating into the nucleus...
. While steroid receptors are generally found within the cell, Baulieu identified a membrane receptor for a steroid hormone in Xenopus laevis.
Neurosteroids
Baulieu discovered that DHEA and pregnenolonePregnenolone
Pregnenolone is a steroid hormone involved in the steroidogenesis of progesterone, mineralocorticoids, glucocorticoids, androgens, and estrogens. As such it is a prohormone. Pregnenolone sulfate is a GABAA antagonist and increases neurogenesis in the hippocampus.-Chemistry:Like other steroids,...
are produced in the brain
Brain
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
and introduced the term "neurosteroids" in 1981. These steroids are active in the nervous system, help repair myelin
Myelin
Myelin is a dielectric material that forms a layer, the myelin sheath, usually around only the axon of a neuron. It is essential for the proper functioning of the nervous system. Myelin is an outgrowth of a type of glial cell. The production of the myelin sheath is called myelination...
, protect the nervous system, and enhance memory. Such agents may prove to be useful in the maintenance of brain function during age, and Baulieu suggests that use of DHEA in the elderly may ameliorate certain age-associated deficits including memory loss and depressive mood. Baulieu conducts clinical research about the potential benefits of DHEA in the elderly population.
RU486
Baulieu is worldwide known for his work on RU486 (Mifepristone) and has been termed the "Father" of the abortion pill. Baulieu who had identified the progesterone receptor suggested to Roussel-Uclaf to modify the progesterone molecule to create an anti-progesterone. Georges Teutsch then synthesized an agent that became initially known as RU468 in 1980. Baulieu investigated the actions of this agent as an anti-progesteroneProgesterone
Progesterone also known as P4 is a C-21 steroid hormone involved in the female menstrual cycle, pregnancy and embryogenesis of humans and other species...
steroid that proved to be able to induce early abortion and became more effective in conjunction with misoprostol
Misoprostol
Misoprostol is a drug that is used for the prevention of non steroidal anti inflammatory drug induced gastric ulcers, for early abortion, to treat missed miscarriage, and to induce labor. The latter use is controversial in the United States. Misoprostol was invented and marketed by G.D...
. As a proponent of a nonsugical approach to abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
Baulieu became an advocat RU468 even when the company withdrew from the product and propelled him into the limelight of the abortion debate
Abortion debate
The abortion debate refers to discussion and controversy surrounding the moral and legal status of abortion. The two main groups involved in the abortion debate are the self-described "pro-choice" movement and the "pro-life" movement...
. As an anti-progesterone RU468 also has other potential such as in the treatment of certain conditions (breast cancer, brain cancer, endometriosis, diabetes, hypertension), and the anti-cortison activity he discovered may be useful to manage depression or Cushing's syndrome.
Longevity
Baulieu has taking increasingly more interest in what he has called the "longevityLongevity
The word "longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography or known as "long life", especially when it concerns someone or something lasting longer than expected ....
revolution", the fact that people are living longer, and its implications. As part of this he is investigating the potential of hormonal substitution such as DEAH to increase well-being in old age. The creation of the "Institute Baulieu" has started to address issues that are detrimental to health in people of age. Currently, the Institute is working on ways to decrease dependability problems of the elderly.
Honours and awards
- 1967 Chevalier of the Ordre national du MériteOrdre National du MériteThe Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
- 1982 French Academy of SciencesFrench Academy of SciencesThe French Academy of Sciences is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research...
, President, 2003–4 - 1989 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical ResearchAlbert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical ResearchLasker~DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award is awarded by the Lasker Foundation for the understanding, diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and cure of disease. The award was renamed in 2008 in honor of Michael E. DeBakey...
, - 1990 National Academy of Science
- 1990 Grand Officier of the Légion d'honneurLégion d'honneurThe Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
- 2002 French Academy of Medicine,
- European Academy of Sciences and ArtsEuropean Academy of Sciences and ArtsThe European Academy of Sciences and Arts was created in 1990 in Salzburg, Austria by heart surgeon Felix Unger of Salzburg; the cardinal archbishop of Vienna, Franz König; and the political scientist and philosopher Nikolaus Lobkowicz....