Jean-Marie Lehn shared the 1987 Nobel Prize in chemistry for his contributions to the field of supramolecular or host-guest chemistry , particularly for his development of the crown ethers known as a cryptands and his work on synthesizing artificial enzymes. His work in this area has numerous applications in medicine and industry and in chemical and biochemical research.

Jean-Marie Pierre Lehn was born to Pierre and Marie (Salomon) Lehn on September 30, 1939, in Rosheim, in the Alsace region of northeastern France. His father had an unusual career combination as both a baker and an organist. After completing a diverse curriculum of chemistry, classics, and philosophy at the Collège Freppel in 1957, Lehn continued his studies at the University of Strasbourg, where his attention was turned to organic chemistry by Guy Ourisson , one of his professors.

After earning his bachelor's degree in 1960, Lehn joined Ourisson as a researcher at the National...