Robert Gallo

Lore & Background

Gallo was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, to a working-class family of Italian descent. He earned a B.S. His choice of profession was influenced by the early death of his sister from leukemia. In 1976, his lab discovered T-cell growth factor, later renamed interleukin-2 (IL-2), which allowed T cells to be grown in culture and opened research into retroviruses. His lab later isolated the first human retrovirus, human T-cell leukemia virus (HTLV), and clarified its role in leukemia.

Reader's Guide

Robert Gallo's significance lies in his central role in identifying HIV as the cause of AIDS and developing the blood test that enabled screening of the blood supply. His earlier discovery of IL-2 was a breakthrough that made much of modern immunology and virology possible, including the isolation of HIV itself. Gallo initially claimed his isolate, HTLV-III, was independent, but in 1991 he admitted it was actually a virus sent from France. The Office of Research Integrity found him guilty of research misconduct in 1992, though the allegations were dropped in 1993. Despite this, his later work on chemokines as HIV inhibitors was recognized as a top scientific breakthrough, and he continues to lead vaccine research through the Institute of Human Virology.

Did You Know?

• Gallo was the most cited scientist in the world from 1981 to 1990.
• He is one of only a few scientists to have received two Lasker Awards.
• His lab discovered human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) in 1986.

Note

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