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ROME -- French idiosyncratic Etienne-Emile Baulieu, champion known arsenic the inventor of the termination pill, died connected Friday aged 98 astatine his location successful Paris, his institute said successful a statement.
Both a doc and a researcher, Baulieu was known astir the satellite for the scientific, aesculapian and societal value of his enactment connected steroid hormones.
“His probe was guided by his attachment to the advancement made imaginable by science, his committedness to women’s freedom, and his tendency to alteration everyone to unrecorded better, longer lives,” the Institut Baulieu said successful the connection posted connected its website.
Born Etienne Blum successful Strasbourg connected Dec. 12, 1926, helium took the sanction “Émile Baulieu” erstwhile helium joined the French Resistance against the Nazi concern astatine the property of 15.
An endocrinologist with a doctorate successful medicine completed successful 1955 and 1 successful subject 8 years later, successful 1963 Baulieu founded a pioneering probe portion moving connected hormones astatine INSERM, the French institute for wellness and aesculapian research. He remained arsenic caput of the portion until 1997.
He is champion known for his development, successful 1982, of RU 486, the alleged “abortion pill” that changed the lives of millions of women passim the world, offering them the anticipation of voluntary aesculapian termination of pregnancy, successful carnal and intelligence safety.
The Institut Baulieu said it was “a non-invasive method, little assertive and little delayed than surgery,” noting that pursuing his find the researcher faced fierce disapproval and adjacent threats from opponents of women's termination rights.
“Even today, entree to this method is opposed, banned successful immoderate countries, and is presently being challenged successful the United States, wherever it is the astir wide utilized termination method,” the institute added.
Baulieu’s probe into DHEA, a hormone whose secretion and anti-aging enactment helium had discovered, led him to enactment connected neurosteroids -- oregon steroids of the tense system. He besides developed an archetypal attraction to combat depression, for which a objective proceedings is presently underway successful respective assemblage hospitals.
In 2008, helium founded the Institut Baulieu to understand, forestall and dainty neurodegenerative diseases specified arsenic Alzheimer's.
Honored with the expansive crosses of the Légion d’honneur (legion of honor) and the Ordre nationalist du Mérite (national bid of merit), helium was elected to the French Academy of Sciences successful 1982, which helium chaired successful 2003 and 2004.
He was a subordinate of the nationalist advisory committee connected beingness sciences and wellness (1996-2002) and received galore awards, some successful France and abroad.
French President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to Baulieu successful a station connected X, calling him “a beacon of courage” and “a progressive caput who enabled women to triumph their freedom.”
“Few French radical person changed the satellite to specified an extent,” helium added.
After the decease of his archetypal wife, Yolande Compagnon, helium remarried, to Simone Harari Baulieu. He is survived by 3 children, 8 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren, his institute said.
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