French biologist who was a major player in the development of molecular biology. His work has contributed to the understanding of the mechanisms of life through the analysis of molecular interactions between nucleic acids and proteins, and the development of tools for targeted gene silencing. His work paved the way for a scientist whose current resulting number of therapeutic developments.
After completing his physical aggregation in 1962, he joined the National Museum of Natural History, the laboratory created by Charles Sadron biophysics, polymer chemist of great renown, who will have a decisive influence on the future of scientific Claude Hélène . Under his leadership, he began a thesis on nucleic acids , an area at the interface between physics, chemistry and biology to which he remained faithful for forty years.
He obtained his PhD in 1966 and joined the Centre of Molecular Biophysics of the CNRS (National Centre for Scientific Research) in New Orleans, where he became manager in 1974. His donations have contributed to host international reputation of the institute. In 1981, he created the Museum, a research unit INSERM be a great tool to interface between the most fundamental work and their possible applications in human health.
He made a tremendous contribution to the field of nucleic acid protein interactions and to the world of oligonucleotides.
He died on 11 February 2003, at the end of a long fight against cancer.