Jacinto Convit García (11 September 1913 – 12 May 2014) was a Venezuelan physician and scientist, known for developing a vaccine to prevent

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...

and his studies to treat cancer. He played a role in founding Venezuela's National Institute of Biomedicine and held many leprosy-related positions. Among Convit's many honors for his work on leprosy and tropical diseases was Spain's

Prince of Asturias Award The Princess of Asturias Awards ( es, Premios Princesa de Asturias, links=no, ast, Premios Princesa d'Asturies, links=no), formerly the Prince of Asturias Awards from 1981 to 2014 ( es, Premios Príncipe de Asturias, links=no), are a series of a ...

in the Scientific and Technical Research category and France's

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

. In 1988, Convit was nominated for a

Nobel Prize in Medicine The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single prize, but five separate prizes that, according ...

for his experimental anti-leprosy vaccine.

Biography

The son of Francesc Convit i Martí, a Spaniard from the region of Catalonia who was a naturalized Venezuelan citizen, Jacinto Convit García was born in La Pastora, Libertador Municipality,

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

in 1913. His mother was Flora García Marrero, a Venezuelan with Canarian roots. Convit began his studies in the Caracas School and continued in the

Andrés Bello Andrés de Jesús María y José Bello López (; November 29, 1781 – October 15, 1865) was a Venezuelan- Chilean humanist, diplomat, poet, legislator, philosopher, educator and philologist, whose political and literary works constitute an ...

lyceum. He was a pupil of

Rómulo Gallegos Rómulo Ángel del Monte Carmelo Gallegos Freire (2 August 1884 – 5 April 1969) was a Venezuelan novelist and politician. For a period of nine months during 1948, he governed as the first freely elected president in Venezuela's history. He was ...

in philosophy and mathematics. Inspired by people with

, he entered medical school at

Central University of Venezuela The Central University of Venezuela (Spanish: ''Universidad Central de Venezuela''; UCV) is a public university of Venezuela located in Caracas. It is widely held to be the highest ranking institution in the country, and it also ranks 18th in L ...

(UCV) in 1932. He earned his title as a Medical Science Doctor in 1938. Convit began his teaching career in 1940 and was appointed Head of the Dermatology Clinic in 1950. In 1965, his work at the Dermatology Clinic was recognized by the US Board of Dermatology. At the same time, he worked for the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in Venezuela. He subsequently played a major role in founding the National Institute of Dermatology (now called the National Institute of Biomedicine) in 1972. In 1968, Convit was elected president of the

International Leprosy Association International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

(ILA) and was re-elected in 1973. In 1971, Convit was named by the WHO as Director of the Co-operative Centre for the Study and Histological Classification of Leprosy. In 1976, Convit was elected Director of the Pan American Research and Training in Leprosy and Tropical Diseases. He was also named president of the ''

International Journal of Leprosy International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

''. In 1987, Convit added killed ''

Mycobacterium leprae ''Mycobacterium leprae'' (also known as the leprosy bacillus or Hansen's bacillus), is one of the two species of bacteria that cause Hansen’s disease (leprosy), a chronic but curable infectious disease that damages the peripheral nerves and ...

'' to the

BCG vaccine Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine is a vaccine primarily used against tuberculosis (TB). It is named after its inventors Albert Calmette and Camille Guérin. In countries where tuberculosis or leprosy is common, one dose is recommended ...

. The combined vaccine was tested worldwide, but was not more effective than regular BCG. In 1988, the Venezuelan government nominated Convit for a

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

. A vaccine for

leishmaniasis Leishmaniasis is a wide array of clinical manifestations caused by parasites of the trypanosome genus ''Leishmania''. It is generally spread through the bite of phlebotomine sandflies, ''Phlebotomus'' and ''Lutzomyia'', and occurs most freq ...

was later developed using Convit's method. He also worked on

onchocerciasis Onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, is a disease caused by infection with the parasitic worm ''Onchocerca volvulus''. Symptoms include severe itching, bumps under the skin, and blindness. It is the second-most common cause of blindne ...

mycosis Fungal infection, also known as mycosis, is disease caused by fungi. Different types are traditionally divided according to the part of the body affected; superficial, subcutaneous, and systemic. Superficial fungal infections include common ti ...

, and other tropical diseases. On June 7, 2010, a Venezuelan newspaper incorrectly announced the successful development by Convit of a new

cancer vaccine A cancer vaccine is a vaccine that either treats existing cancer or prevents development of cancer. Vaccines that treat existing cancer are known as ''therapeutic'' cancer vaccines or tumor antigen vaccines. Some of the vaccines are "autologous", ...

intended to prevent colon, stomach and breast cancer. Venezuela's National Institute of Biomedicine soon published a note clarifying that they have been working for the previous three years on a vaccine against cancer and it is still in development. During this time they have been evaluating a small group of 23 patients, mostly breast cancer and a few of colon, stomach and brain cancers. They have been giving patients an experimental model of immunotherapy against cancer, which have had encouraging results. This vaccine is based on the idea that cancerous cells appear and propagate because the body does not detect them. A sample of the tumour mixed with

formalin Formaldehyde ( , ) (systematic name methanal) is a naturally occurring organic compound with the formula and structure . The pure compound is a pungent, colourless gas that polymerises spontaneously into paraformaldehyde (refer to section Fo ...

and BCG marks the malignant cells so the immune system might react and attack the cancer.

Death

Convit turned 100 in 2013. He died on 12 May 2014. Described as a popular hero, he never charged a patient for the care he gave. Convit published his last study at age 100 in 2013.

Honours

(France) *

(Spain) *

nomination (1988) *

TWAS Prize This is a list of recipients of the TWAS Prize, awarded annually by The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). Summary Agricultural Sciences Biology Chemistry Earth Sciences Engineering Sciences Mathematics Medical Sc ...

(2006)

In popular culture

In 2013 an homonymous documentary film about his life directed by Sergio Monsalve was released. The documentary was screened at the XI Venezuelan Film Festival in 2015.

References

External links

* * *
Blog about Jacinto Convit's work

Immunotherapy autovaccine for cancer treatment
{{DEFAULTSORT:Convit, Jacinto 1913 births 2014 deaths Men centenarians Venezuelan centenarians Central University of Venezuela faculty People from Caracas Venezuelan leprologists Venezuelan dermatologists Venezuelan people of Canarian descent Venezuelan people of Catalan descent TWAS laureates