It is with deep sadness that the Institut Pasteur management team learned of the death of Marc Girard, Professor at the Institut Pasteur (1966-1999).
 
Marc Girard was born on June 24, 1936 in Lyon. After completing studies at Alfort National Veterinary School (1954-1958) and a degree in science at Paris-Sorbonne University (1958-1960), he obtained a PhD in Veterinary Science in 1960 and a PhD in Science in 1967. He subsequently completed postdoctoral fellowships at the Collège de France (1962-1963), Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York (1964-1965) and the Salk Institute in California (1965-1966).
 
Marc Girard joined the Institut Pasteur in 1966 as a CNRS research associate in André Lwoff's laboratory. In 1971, he was appointed as Head of the Physiology of Viruses Unit at the Gustave Roussy Cancer Research Institute in Villejuif. He returned to the Institut Pasteur in 1980 to lead the Molecular Virology Unit.
Throughout his career, Marc Girard focused his research on the molecular biology of picornaviruses (including poliovirus, hepatitis A virus and mengovirus) and on viral vaccines, especially an HIV vaccine. 
 
Alongside David Baltimore and Renato Dulbecco, he studied the parameters of viral RNA replication in poliovirus and identified the protein complexes involved. In André Lwoff's laboratory, he demonstrated that poliovirus replication is semi-conservative and established that SV40 (simian virus 40) replication is synchronous with the host cell division cycle. With his team, he studied the organization of the poliovirus genome and the regulation of viral genes and demonstrated the existence of a high level of genetic recombination among viral RNA molecules in infected cells. From 1985 onwards, he turned his attention to the development of a vaccine for HIV-1, targeting the immunodominant neutralizing epitope of the virus envelope glycoprotein gp160 by firstly using recombinant virus vaccines, then recombinant canarypox. He was a pioneer, demonstrating as early as 1990 that vaccination could protect chimpanzees.
 
Alongside his research activities, Marc Girard was firmly committed to teaching and to the ongoing development of the Institut Pasteur. He taught on the postgraduate course in virology and immunology run by the Institut Pasteur and Paris 6 and Paris 7 Universities, was a member of the Scientific Council (1982-1984) and served as Director of the Department of Virology (1997-1999). He was also appointed as Scientific Director of Institut Pasteur Production, then Pasteur-Vaccins, in Marnes-la-Coquette (1984-1989), before becoming Deputy Vice-President and then Vice-President Research Applications (1990-1994).
 
Alongside his work at the Institut Pasteur, Marc Girard led the "Vaccines" Concerted Action at the ANRS and chaired the Scientific Council at the National Center for Veterinary and Food Studies (CNEVA), the Eurovac consortium for research into HIV vaccines, and the committee for rapid tests for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) at the French Food Safety Agency (AFSSA). He also sat on the Scientific Council of the Mérieux Foundation and directed the European Center for Virology and Immunology Research in Lyon.
 
Marc Girard was recognized for his expertise and dedication, and he played a key role in the development of virology research at the Institut Pasteur. For his colleagues, he was much more than a devoted scientist – he was an inspiring and committed mentor. At Paris 7 University, where he was a professor for many years, he was recognized for the quality of his teaching and the rigorous approach that he instilled in his students. Many scientists owe their vocation for virology to Marc Girard.
 
Marc Girard died on October 9, 2025 at the age of 89.
 
The funeral will be held on October 17, 2025 at 2.30pm at the church of Saint-Cyr au Mont d'Or near Lyon.
 
The management team and staff of the Institut Pasteur would like to express their heartfelt condolences to his family.
 

Photo : Pr. Marc Girard, anciennement chef de l'Unité de Virologie Moléculaire et directeur des applications de la recherche à l'Institut Pasteur. Etude du virus de la fièvre de la vallée du Rift, du virus de la fièvre jaune et des poliovirus. Institut Pasteur1989