Gabriel Richet: the Man and the Scientist

Gabriel Richet who died in Paris in October 2014 was the fourth of a brilliant dynasty of professors of medicine including a Nobel prize, his grandfather, Charles Richet. He behaved courageously during the Second World War and participated in the Campaign of France in 1940 and in the combats in the Vosges Mountains in 1945. His family participated in the resistance during the German occupation of France and three of his parents including his father, one of his brothers and one of his cousins were deported in Germany. At the end of the war, he was with Jean Hamburger the founder of French nephrology at Necker Hospital in Paris. He realized the first hemodialyses in France and was involved in the first allogenic transplantation that was not immediately rejected. From 1961 to 1985, he was the head of a school of nephrology at Tenon Hospital and attracted in his department many young collaborators and scientists. He was the first to describe the role of specialized cells of the collecting duct in the control of acid base equilibrium. He was the subject of a national and international recognition. Founding member of the International Society of Nephrology in 1960, he was elected his President from 1981-1984. His fame could be measured by the number of fellows and visiting facultiesfrom countries all over the world. When he retired in 1985, he left an important legacy involving several departments of nephrology directed by his ancient collaborators. After his retirement, he was an active member of the French Academy of Medicine and devoted much of his time to the history of medicine and, particularly, of nephrology. The main qualities of the man were his constant research of new ideas, his eagerness to work and his open mind to understand others.