Worthy successor of Guillaume Duchenne de Boulogne whose chair he had taken over, Michel Fardeau has dedicated his life to advancing research and treatments for dozens of neuromuscular diseases long orphaned from diagnosis and care.
A physician-researcher, he was Head of Clinic at the Paris Hospitals before collaborating, at the end of the 1960s, with the National Institutes for Health (NIH) in Bethesda, in the United States. Alongside his American counterpart, King W. Engel, he laid the foundations of neuromuscular histological exploration by electron microscopy. This pioneering work led to the creation of the electron microscopy laboratory at the Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital, which became a CNRS research team in 1971, then an Inserm unit from 1976 to 1998. This work will serve as a basis for the creation of the Institute of Myologywhich he will direct from its founding by the AFM-Téléthon in 1996.
Under his leadership, world firsts have been achieved, particularly in gene therapy.“Michel Fardeau was the expert hand who, for the first time in the world, at the beginning of the 2000s, administered a drug gene in patients suffering from Duchenne muscular dystrophy, so dear to his heart”underlines Serge Braun, scientific director of the AFM-Téléthon. Until his last days, he enthusiastically followed advances in this field.
A major contribution to the scientific and ethical community
Michel Fardeau has chaired the first Scientific Council of the AFM-Téléthon from 1982 to 1986, but his commitment did not stop there. He was member of the National Ethics Advisory Committee (1986-1990), before chairing the Ethics Committee in Medical and Health Research (2000-2003). It will have had a lasting influence on ethical reflection on scientific research.
As a professor at the National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, he held a chair dedicated to the social integration of disabled people. Through his work, he has nourished the cause of disability and promoted equal opportunities, helping to transform the societal perception of disability.
An inspiring teacher, Michel Fardeau has trained several generations of clinicians, geneticists and myologiststransmitting its knowledge and its values of excellence and humanity. “He was part of the great AFM-Téléthon family and he leaves Myology with a formidable legacy and many myologist students who spread his knowledge and expertise throughout the world”testifies Laurence Tiennot-Herment, president of the AFM-Téléthon.
On behalf of the patients and families, the AFM-Téléthon sends its sincere condolences to their loved ones.
