His daughter, Chantal Guillemin, confirmed the death, but did not know the exact cause.
Dr. Guillemin, the founder of the field of research known as neuroendocrinology, was born in France and settled in the United States after World War II. He spent his formative years conducting painstaking experiments in search of “neurohormones,” tiny brain secretions so elusive that many scientists doubted their existence.
Dr. Guilmin was at the Salk Institute in San Diego when he shared the 1977 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Rosalyn Sussman Yarrow and Andrew V. Sharry. The latter was a former collaborator who later became science’s greatest enemy.
A 1981 book by New York Times science journalist Nicholas Wade details their 21-year battle, which the sophisticated Dr. Guilmin describes as “a competition in the best sense of the word.” The rougher Sharry called it “years of vicious attacks and violent retaliation.” ”
In violation of scientific practice, the men hid data from each other and refused to share samples. They mocked each other’s mistakes on stage at the competition. Both were reluctant to share the credit for their discoveries with each other and with their lab colleagues.
In his book, Wade recalls that Dr. Guillemin and Charly, who wore tuxedos at the Nobel Prize ceremony, “looked like men about to be executed.” By winning the award together, he said, “they were each denied the victory they had longed for: the final victory over the other.”
In fact, all three laureates played pivotal roles in the development of neuroendocrinology. This field of neuroendocrinology was developed in the mid-20th century based on his hypothesis that the brain releases chemical signals (hormones) into the bloodstream to control the pituitary gland, a master regulator that controls various functions. did. endocrine organs of the body. Normally, the brain sends signals through electrical impulses and the release of neurotransmitters between cells.
This innovative idea challenged the prevailing scientific view of the brain as the seat of higher-order thinking and emotion, rather than a common endocrine gland.
Renowned endocrinologist Rolf Luft said of Dr. Guillemin and Dr. Schary at the Nobel Prize presentation, citing their work on protein hormones, “I believe that they have uncovered a significant part of the connection between body and soul.” It’s fair to say that.” (Luft also praised Yarrow for important basic research in a related but separate field.)
Proving the existence of neurohormones has been a technically difficult challenge. These substances were produced in a brain structure known as the hypothalamus, hidden near the base of the skull. The brain makes them in such small quantities that they cannot be measured in the blood circulating through the body.
Gary Hammer, director of the endocrine oncology program at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, said the hypothalamus itself is “incredibly small,” meaning hormones can only be detected in the small network of capillaries that surround it. said.
“It was a lot of work,” Hammer said.
Dr. Guilmin was part of a small group of researchers enthusiastically dedicated to this research. After seven years of grueling and sometimes gruesome research in animal brains, Dr. Guillemin set out on his first exploration target: corticotropin-releasing factor, which plays a role in the body’s response to stress. No known hormones could be discovered. Incidentally, Schary was also unable to find the substance.
It took another seven years and the hypothalamus of 270,000 sheep in 1969 for Dr. Guillemin to isolate one milligram of thyrotropin-releasing hormone, which tells the pituitary gland to control the thyroid gland. He also discovered other hormones, including gonadotropin-releasing hormone, which sends commands to the pituitary gland to the ovaries and testes.
Hammer said his discoveries have influenced many medical fields, as understanding how the endocrine system works has helped researchers develop treatments for many endocrine-related diseases. said.
For example, the isolation and analysis of gonadotropin-releasing hormone has advanced scientists’ understanding of the hormonal control of the menstrual cycle and ultimately facilitated the development of oral contraceptives and hormone therapy for prostate cancer.
Somatostatin, another hormone discovered by Dr. Guilmin, is the basis of the anti-nausea drug Zofran and has also contributed to the development of treatments to inhibit the growth of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and other hormone-responsive tumors. Masu.
Roger Charles Louis Guillemin was born on January 11, 1924 in Dijon, France. His father was a toolmaker. After graduating from the University of Dijon in 1942, he entered the medical school of the University of Lyon, interrupting his studies to participate in the activities of the French underground deporting refugees to Switzerland during World War II.
He received his medical degree in 1949 and then pursued a doctorate at the University of Montreal. In 1950, he nearly died from an attack of tuberculous meningitis. The following year, he married Lucienne Billard, a nurse. His wife also passed away in 2021 at the age of 100. In addition to Chantal, survivors include five children: Francois, Claire, Hélène, Elisabeth and Cece; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
After receiving his doctorate in 1953, Dr. Guilmin joined the faculty at Baylor University School of Medicine in Houston, where he taught physiology, explored neurohormones, and worked for a time with Sharry, who left the school in 1962. I did. Dr. Guilmin said he was drawn to the Salk Institute by a phone call from virologist Jonas Salk and the stunning ocean views.
He remained there for much of his career, discovering somatostatin, a hormone that acts on the pituitary gland to suppress growth hormone, and researching endorphins, brain chemicals that act as natural opiates.
He retired from active research in 1989, but served as interim director of the Salk Institute from 2007 to 2009.
Dr. Guilmin and Shary shared half of the Nobel Prize. The other half was awarded to Yarrow for the development of a radioimmunoassay that detects substances present in trace amounts in the body.
Although perhaps unseemly, Mr. Wade suggested that Dr. Guilmin’s conflict with Shaly may have been the key to their success. Because it motivated scientists to persevere in long, difficult, and ultimately very important research.
“Science is best done in teams with diverse expertise,” says Hammer. Dr. Guilmin “was a master at it. He brought together all the physiologists, chemists, molecular biologists, and later cell biologists to solve problems.”
