Charles Richet

Born in Paris in 1850, Charles Robert Richet became a French physiologist, physician, and writer whose work left a lasting mark on medical science. He taught at the University of Paris and built a reputation for broad scientific curiosity, studying topics that ranged from physiology to experimental medicine.

He is most closely remembered for his research on anaphylaxis, the severe hypersensitive reaction that can follow exposure to a substance the body has encountered before. That work earned him the 1913 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and helped open an important path for later research in allergy and immunology.

Richet died in 1935. Today, he is remembered above all for helping scientists understand how the body's defenses can sometimes react with dangerous intensity.