France 2030 - Laureates of the 2025 call for projects and PEPR MIE junior chairs

Each project is led by an interdisciplinary consortium consisting of 4 to 20 teams with complementary expertise and led by a coordinator. The complete teams are detailed in Appendix 3.

• COMPONENT 1 – Accelerating knowledge acquisition on emerging infectious diseases

CHICAGO – Coordinator: Ali AMARA (Inserm Paris 7)

The CHICAGO project (Determinants of replication and pathogenesis of the chikungunya virus in the mammalian host and insect vector), coordinated by Mr Ali AMARA (Inserm Paris 7), aims to decipher the molecular and cellular mechanisms of CHIKV replication and pathogenesis, focusing on the multifunctional nsP3 protein. Building on major discoveries made by the consortium, it is based on the conviction that fundamental advances are essential for developing new antiviral and vaccine strategies.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €2,016,998

CCHFabric – Coordinator: Mr. François-Loïc COSSET (Inserm Lyon)

The CCHFabric project (Deciphering the host and viral factors that govern the assembly mechanism of the Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) and orthonairoviruses), coordinated by Mr François-Loïc COSSET (Inserm Lyon), aims to characterise the role of the non-structural viral proteins GP38 and NSm in the assembly and secretion of viral particles, and to identify and characterise the role of host factors. This project will combine approaches from structural biology, computational biology and cellular and molecular virology to determine these mechanisms of infectious viral particle production.

Amount of France 2030 funding: €2,001,753

MuST-RSV – Coordinator: Ms Marie GALLOUX (INRAE)

The MuST-RSV project (Multi-scale regulation of transcription and translation during RSV infection), coordinated by Ms Marie GALLOUX (INRAE), aims to address the multiplication of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) from a new angle, focusing not only on ribonucleoprotein particles (RNPs) but also, and above all, on viral mRNAs and the exploration of the mechanisms involved in their regulation, from transcription to translation.

Amount of French funding for 2030: €1,410,699

PARAMYXOM6A – Coordinator: Mr Bruno SARGUEIL (CNRS, Dir 1)

The PARAMYXOM6A project (Study and targeting of m6A methylations in paramyxovirus RNAs for the development of innovative antivirals against emerging viruses from this innate host immune family), coordinated by Mr Bruno SARGUEIL (CNRS Dir 1), aims to target the presence of N6-methylated adenosine (m6A) on paramyxovirus RNA, which contributes to the virus’s immune escape from its host, as a new therapeutic strategy.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €1,994,526

Flu-PREDICT – Coordinator: Ms Nadia NAFFAKH (Institut Pasteur)

The Flu-PREDICT project (A hybrid, experimental and machine learning approach to predict reassortment between avian and human or swine influenza viruses), coordinated by Ms Nadia NAFFAKH (Institut Pasteur), aims to identify the determinants of compatibility between viral RNA segments of influenza A virus, whose genetic mixing can lead to new pandemic genotypes, based on high-throughput experimental data coupled with machine learning (ML) approaches.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €1,623,826.40

Disorder-to-adapt – Coordinator: Mr Martin BLACKLEDGE (CEA)

The Disorder-to-adapt project (Therapeutics targeting the intrinsic disorder of proteins at the influenza-host interface), coordinated by Mr Martin BLACKLEDGE (CEA), aims to characterise the role of disordered proteins in the adaptation of avian influenza to humans, and to exploit this knowledge to explore new approaches to the development of viral inhibitors.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €1,541,120

• COMPONENT 2 – Organising and developing new treatments, vaccines and other means of prevention, diagnosis and surveillance for emerging infectious diseases

ArboSENSOR – Coordinator: Ms Laura PICAS (CNRS Languedoc)

The ArboSENSOR project (Quartz BioNEMS for arbovirus detection), coordinated by Ms Laura PICAS (CNRS Languedoc), aims to overcome the technological challenge of combining high-performance, ultra-sensitive devices capable of detecting a biomarker of interest, such as an arbovirus, by developing resonators operating at a very high frequency that can selectively detect arboviruses in complex samples with high sensitivity.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €1,073,089

CATMOS – Coordinator: Mr Jean-Maxime ROUX (CEA)

The CATMOS project (Continuous monitoring beacon for airborne biological threats), coordinated by Mr Jean-Maxime ROUX (CEA), aims to develop a breakthrough technology that will enable the monitoring of pathogens in the air, in order to control emerging and re-emerging respiratory infectious diseases more effectively, both at an individual and collective level.

Amount of France 2030 funding: €1,981,539

• COMPONENT 3 – Enabling public policy and society to respond to epidemic crises

INFODEM-EARLY – Coordinator: Mr. Léonard HEYERDAHL (Institut Pasteur Paris)

The INFODEM-EARLY project (Augmented anthropology platform for the real-time detection, classification and mitigation of infodemics, aimed at strengthening vaccine confidence in arboviruses in French overseas departments and regions), coordinated by Mr Léonard HEYERDAHL (Institut Pasteur Paris), aims to determine how vaccine narratives relating to arboviruses arise and circulate between online and offline spheres in the French overseas departments and regions, and how an intervention focused on dialogue, led by clinicians trained in empathy, could restore confidence quickly enough to protect public health campaigns.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €1,232,223

Each chair is held by one or more young scientists and is funded for a maximum indicative amount of €1 million over a period of 48 months. The complete teams are detailed in Appendix 3.

ARBOAAB – Coordinator: Mr Paul BASTARD (Imagine Institute)

The application by Mr Paul BASTARD (Imagine Institute) for the ARBOAAB project (Autoantibodies against type I interferons in patients with severe arbovirus infections) aims to demonstrate that autoantibodies neutralising type I interferons (AAN-I-IFN) could be responsible for a significant proportion of rare cases of adverse effects associated with other live attenuated arbovirus vaccines, such as the dengue vaccine (CYD-TDV), YFV 17D and CHIKV vaccine, as well as a significant proportion of more common cases of potentially fatal encephalitis triggered by numerous tropical human arboviruses, including CHIKV, ZIKV, YFV and Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) infections, among others.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €540,001

TICK-TACK-TOE – Coordinator: Ms. Marine PETIT (Institut Pasteur)

The application by Ms. Marine PETIT (Institut Pasteur) for the TICK-TACK-TOE project (Understanding the interactions between cellular stress, immunity and viral infection in ticks to block the transmission of haemorrhagic arboviruses) aims to focus on the midgut of the tick, the primary site of entry and replication of the virus after ingestion of infected blood. This project aims to discover how TBVs interact with intestinal epithelial cells and cross the intestinal barrier to establish systemic infection, a process that remains poorly understood and largely overlooked in current research.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €1,197,200

GENERATION – Coordinator: Ms. Raphaëlle KLITTING (Inserm DR PACA)

The application by Ms. Raphaëlle KLITTING (Inserm) for the GENERATION project (Genetic determinants of dengue virus escape from homotypic immune neutralisation) aims to identify the determinants of homotypic protection against DENV infection, focusing on a key element of immunity against DENV, namely immune neutralisation. This will pave the way for better vaccine protection and surveillance of populations exposed to dengue.

Amount of aid from France 2030: €832,445

VISTA – Coordinator: Ms. DENOLLY Solène (Inserm DR Auvergne Rhone Alpes)

The application by Ms. DENOLLY Solène (Inserm) for the VISTA project (Exploiting host factors associated with virus-induced structures to design antiviral strategies against orthonairoviruses) aims to discover and characterise the host factors necessary for the viral life cycle of three orthonairoviruses, including CCHFV, HAZV and AIGV, focusing on factors recruited in two virus-induced structures.

Amount of France 2030 funding: €839,681

CLIMARBO – Coordinator: Mr Thomas VIAL (Institut Pasteur)

The application by Mr Thomas VIAL (Institut Pasteur) for the CLIMARBO project (Arbovirus transmission and climate change: molecular impact on Aedes mosquitoes) aims to decipher the cellular and metabolic molecular mechanisms cellular and metabolic mechanisms by which climate change influences the vector competence of mosquitoes, using Aedes aegypti as the main model and transposing the results to Aedes albopictus, a vector that is currently causing growing concern in Europe and France.

Amount of France 2030 funding: €1,198,827

• AAP 2025

SECTION 1 – Accelerating knowledge acquisition on emerging infectious diseases

CHICAGO

Teams: AMARA Ali (INSERM Paris 7); LECUIT Marc (Institut Pasteur Paris); REGUERA Juan (UNIVERSITY OF AIX MARSEILLE); REY Félix (Institut Pasteur Paris); TRINDADE MARQUES JOAO (University of Strasbourg)

CCHFabric

Teams: COSSET François-Loïc (INSERM Lyon); DENOLLY Solène (INSERM Lyon); BÖCKMANN Anja (CNRS Rhone); LOTTEAU Vincent (INSERM Lyon); GUARDADO-CALVO Pablo (Institut Pasteur Paris); CARBONE Alessandra (University of Paris 6)

MuST-RSV

Teams: GALLOUX Marie (INRAE); RAMEIX-WELTI Marie-Anne (Institut Pasteur Paris); NAMY Olivier (CNRS IdF Sud); GUTSCHE Irina (CNRS Alpes)

PARAMYXOM6A

Teams: SARGUEIL Bruno (CNRS DIR 1); PONTY Yann (CNRS DR4); ETHEVE-QUELQUEJEU Mélanie (UPCité); PERRIN-COCON Laure (INSERM Lyon); BIACCHESI Stephane (INRAE); LOTTEAU Vincent (INSERM Lyon); COCCO Simona (CNRS DR2)

Flu-PREDICT

Teams: NAFFAKH Nadia (Institut Pasteur); GRIFFITHS Andrew (ESPCI Paris – PSL); SMYTH Redmond (CNRS Alsace)

Disorder-to-adapt

Teams: BLACKLEDGE Martin (CEA); NAFFAKH Nadia (Institut Pasteur Paris); PICHON Chantal (INSERM)

SECTION 2 – Organising and developing new treatments, vaccines and other means of prevention, diagnosis and surveillance for emerging infectious diseases

ArboSENSOR

Teams: PICAS Laura (CNRS Languedoc); CARRETERO Adrien (CNRS Languedoc); MARTINEAU Pierre (INSERM Montpellier); POMPON Julien (CNRS Languedoc)

CATMOS

Teams: ROUX Jean-Maxime (CEA); ROSA CALATRAVA Manuel (Univ. Lyon 1); BOUFFIER Laurent (University of Bordeaux); HOLLENSTEIN Marcel (Institut Pasteur Paris)

SECTION 3 – Enabling public policy and society to respond to epidemic crises

INFODEM-EARLY

Teams: HEYERDAHL Léonard (Institut Pasteur Paris); HORRI Sophien (CHU de La Réunion); ABOUDOU Achim (ORS Mayotte); VERGER Pierre (ORS Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)

• AAC Junior Chairs

ARBOAAB

Teams: BASTARD Paul (Imagine Institute)

TICK-TACK-TOE

Teams: Marine Petit (Institut Pasteur Paris); Anavaj Sakuntabhai (Institut Pasteur Paris)

GENERATION

Teams: Raphaëlle Klitting (INSERM)

VISTA

Teams: Solène Denolly (INSERM)

CLIMARBO

Teams: Thomas Vial (Institut Pasteur)