Luis Federico Leloir
Argentine biochemist · Argentina · On the map · Doctors · Lived 1906 to 1987 · aged 81
Luis Federico Leloir was an Argentine physician and biochemist who received the 1970 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of the metabolic pathways by which carbohydrates are synthesized and converted into energy in the body.
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A typical day, 30 days to 25 October 2026
The middle day of the days counted, so one week of news cannot move it. The line under it is the last 93 days, one point a day.
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Leloir (top left) with family on an Argentine resort, 1951
Luis Leloir and Carlos Eugenio Cardini at work in the Fundación Instituto Campomar, 1960.
Chemical structure of galactose. Leloir and his team discovered that in galactosemia, patients lacked the necessary enzyme (Galactose-1-phosphate uridylyltransferase) to convert unusable galactose into usable glucose.
Leloir celebrating with colleagues December 10, 1970, after winning the Nobel Prize.
Leloir Family Mausoleum
Leloir (left) with Armando Parodi and his daughter Amelia in the laboratory.
Leloir with his wife Amelia and cardiac surgeon René Favaloro.Awards
About this person
Although born in France, Leloir received the majority of his education at the University of Buenos Aires and was director of the private research group Fundación Instituto Campomar until his death in 1987. His research into sugar nucleotides, carbohydrate metabolism, and renal hypertension garnered international attention and led to significant progress in understanding, diagnosing and treating the congenital disease galactosemia. Leloir is buried in La Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires.
