Five major themes were at the core of 2022 research advances: emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, brain connectivity and neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, vaccinology and immunotherapy. They have honored Institut Pasteur's 2019-2023 strategic plan.
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In January 2018, Institut Pasteur adopted a new strategic plan for 2019-2023, to boost basic research and increase its impact on human health, with scientific areas focuses on: emerging infectious diseases; antimicrobial resistance; brain connectivity and neurodegenerative diseases. But also concerted actions in cancer and vaccinology. Discover Institut Pasteur's 2019-2023 strategic plan. |
Emerging infectious diseases
The year 2022 was marked by two pandemic situations, COVID-19 and mpox, in which the Institut Pasteur demonstrated its major role in tackling emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). More than 450 scientific publications on COVID-19 had been produced by the end of 2022, on aspects such as modeling epidemic dynamics, identifying places of transmission, analyzing the immune response and investigating the host-virus relationship. The teams on campus responded immediately at the start of the mpox outbreak in May 2022; the Laboratory for Urgent Response to Biological Threats (CIBU) is one of only a few centers in France authorized to isolate and sequence the monkeypox virus. Several teams are working on the development of bedside diagnostic tests and serological assays that can be used for population-wide epidemiological studies. As part of a collaborative project with the Institut Pasteur de Bangui (the AFRIPOX project), scientists also documented the increasing frequency of outbreaks in Central Africa over the past five years. Specific funding was awarded for six research projects led by early career scientists at the Institut Pasteur, and the strategic priority area was also strengthened with the launch of two new U5 units. Finally, the international collaboration signed between the Institut Pasteur and University of California (UCSF QBI) to establish a dedicated Center of Excellence marked a further highlight in the field of emerging infectious diseases for 2022.
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The Emerging infectious diseases priority area in numbers :
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Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
Several Institut Pasteur teams are involved in research on antimicrobial resistance (AMR), mainly focusing on three areas: host-directed therapy and host-pathogen interactions; the variability of the microbial response to antimicrobials in terms of persistence, tolerance and dormancy; and epidemiology and genomics, evolution and resistance. Every year, the priority area strengthens its partnerships and participates in several national bodies (the antibiotic resistance priority research program (PPR), ABRomics, etc.), international bodies (such as IRAADD, see p. 2-3), and international education and research projects and public awareness initiatives (PPU-Oxford, MOOCs, videos for the public on antibiotic resistance, etc.), uniting stakeholders to step up the fight against AMR. Symposia on AMR were held with Université Paris Cité, the University of Oxford, Inserm and the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research (MESRI), and the Pasteur Network. A five-year unit was established to ramp up phage therapy research in this area.
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The Antimicrobial resistance priority area in numbers:
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Brain connectivity and neurodegenerative diseases
Substantial efforts were made to further develop the Brain Connectivity and Neurodegenerative Diseases community, which draws its diversity and strength from its multidisciplinary composition. This cross-disciplinary approach was in evidence on Translational Science Day, which this year focused on neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases. With its active participation in FENS 2022, the priority area also shone a light on the situation at the international level. Several major publications, especially on the discovery of novel mechanisms in SARS-CoV-2 infection and the decoding of a dialog between the gut microbiota and the brain, reflect the excellence of research in this priority area. Particular highlights include obtaining a significant European grant for the R2D2-MH project on mental health and neurodevelopment (in French) and receiving several awards. Collaborations also featured prominently this year, with existing links to the Paris Brain Institute strengthened through competitive bilateral projects and discussion days, and efforts made to reach out globally.
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The Brain connectivity and neurodegenerative diseases priority area in numbers:
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Cancer
The Cancer Initiative stood out for its excellence and dynamism this year, securing several external grants totaling more than €10 million and publishing over 70 studies in international journals. The initiative also took active steps to unite its scientific community on campus, focusing on training for second-year Master's students – a rich seam of talent – and organizing various events including the first Cancer Initiative symposium in December 2022. Moreover, through cross-disciplinary and collaborative efforts, it enabled the Targeted Technological Action (ATC) on "Drug Discovery and Screening" to update and supplement its bank of oncology-specific compounds, benefiting numerous projects on campus.
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The Cancer initiative in numbers:
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Vaccinology and Immunotherapy
2022 was rich with news regarding vaccinology and immunotherapy (IT) projects at the Institut Pasteur (IP). The highlight of the year involved Stewart Cole’s announcement of a new Center of Vaccinology and Immunotherapy (CVI) which will accentuate the continuum between discovery and clinical research with the aim of developing new vaccines and immunotherapies to prevent or treat human diseases. The CVI will leverage existing expertise on the IP campus and International Network but will also reinforce specific themes through recruitment and external agreements with academic, hospital-university and industrial partners. Concerning vaccine candidates, the synthetic carbohydrate-based conjugate vaccine SF2a-TT15 against diarrheal disease caused by Shigella flexneri 2a is in Phase II trials, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Wellcome Trust, while a quadrivalent Shigella vaccine is in development in partnership with the Gates Medical Research Institute. A vaccine against Lassa fever based on a measles vaccine vector (MV-LASV) completed a Phase I trial supported by CEPI and led by our partners Themis/Merck. For IT, broadly neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 (SPK001, SPK002) have rapidly advanced to Phase II led by the startup SpikImm. New vaccine candidates using attenuated Mopeia virus or Lentivirus viral vectors are moving towards clinical evaluation and a portfolio of vaccine and IT candidates are in discovery at the Institut Pasteur and in collaborations with industrial partners. Moreover, the CVI will foster clinical research to better understand how vaccines and IT work in humans (including a novel immune-monitoring approach to study human mucosal immunity). Finally, the Vaccinology and Immunotherapy community at IP continues to be strongly implicated in defining and implementing national and international vaccine strategies in the context of pandemic preparedness.
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The Vaccinology and Immunotherapy initiative in numbers:
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