Laureates of the Fellowships scheme – Start Programme 2025

The Fellowships scheme – Start Programme 2025: funding for doctoral and master’s grants

In 2025, two calls for applications have been organised under the Fellowships scheme of the Start Programme:

• the call for applications ‘Master’s grants – International Network’, to support people from LMICs (Low and Middle Income Countries) in their master”s degrees;
• the call for applications ‘PhD grants’, to enable people to do a PhD thesis on the theme of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs).

Results of the call for applications ‘Master’s grants – International Network’ 2025

6 master’s grants have been awarded in the context of this call for applications.

Laureates

Mame Samba NDIAYE

• Masters’ degree: Master 2 Ingénierie de la santé – Parcours MODM (Management des Opérations Cliniques et Data Management) – Sous-parcours Gestion des Bases de données cliniques / Université de Montpellier
• Internship: Data management for clinical trials and other research projects / Centre Régional de Recherche et de Formation à la prise en charge clinique de Fann (CRCF), CHU de Fann, Dakar, Sénégal
• Scientific supervisor: Karim DIOP
• Partner Site / PRISME involved: Senegal Partner Site

Marietou Aïda TRAORE

• Masters’ degree: Master 1 Sciences, technologies, santé – Mention Master Bio-informatique / Université de Montpellier
• Internship: Using data science tools to identify risk factors for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in the southwestern region of Burkina Faso / Centre MURAZ, Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso
• Scientific supervisor: Isidore TRAORE
• Partner Site / PRISME involved: Burkina Faso Partner Site

Ibrahima Niass GUEYE

• Masters’ degree: Master spécialisé de Santé Publique / Ecole Pasteur-Cnam
• Internship: Epidémiology and public health / Centre Régional de Recherche et de Formation à la prise en charge clinique de Fann (CRCF), CHU de Fann, Dakar, Sénégal
• Scientific supervisor: Bara NDIAYE
• Partner site / PRISME involved: Senegal Partner site

Thanh Huong PHAM

• Masters’ degree: Master 1 Santé – Parcours Épidémiologie, Données de Santé, Biostatistique (EDSB) / Université de Montpellier
• Internship: Body mass index and risk of developing latent or active Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection / Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic and Emerging Infections (PCCEI), Université de Montpellier, France
• Scientific supervisor: Nicolas NAGOT
• Partner site / PRISME involved: Vietnam Partner Site

Guindo Oumoul Nadine ETOUNDI MBALLA

• Masters’ degree: Master 1 Santé Publique – Epidémiologie, recherche clinique, évaluation (ERCE) / Université de Lorraine
• Internship: Clinical Research – Protocol monitoring and clinical trial management / Centre de coordination et de recherche, Hôpital Central de Yaoundé, Cameroun
• Scientific supervisor: Anne-Cécile Bissek ; Marie VARLOTEAUX
• Partner site / PRISME involved: Cameroon Partner Site

Adriane SILVA SENA LIMA

• Masters’ degree: Master 2 Biologie-Santé – Maladies infectieuses et microbiote / Aix-Marseille Université
• Internship: Screening and characterizing flavivirus insectiviruses in mosquitoes / Aix-Marseille Université (Unité des Virus Emergents), Marseille, France
• Scientific supervisor: Xavier DE LAMBALLERIE
• Partner site / PRISME involved: Brazil Partner Site

Results of the call for applications ‘PhD Theses grants’ 2025

Under this call, open in 2025 to applications on emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), 10 PhD thesis grants have been awarded.

Laureates

Georges HANNA

• PhD thesis project: iPAVE: Innovative Phylodynamic Approaches for Effective Viral Epidemic Management
• Supervisors: Marie-Anne RAMEIX-WELTI ; Frédéric LEMOINE
• Laboratory: Molecular Mechanisms of Multiplication of Pneumovirus (M3P), Institut Pasteur

Nina HULOT

• PhD thesis project: Dissecting the molecular determinants of alphavirus vector specificity
• Supervisor: Joao TRINDADE MARQUES
• Laboratory: Mosquito Immune Responses (U1257), Inserm, Université de Strasbourg

Issy Fernanda HINCAPIE MENA

• PhD thesis project: Defining the landscape of human genes regulating coronavirus replication in primary airway epithelia and elucidating their mechanisms of action
• Supervisors: Caroline GOUJON ; Olivier MONCORGE
• Laboratory: Institut de Recherche en infectiologie de Montpellier (IRIM) (UMR 9004), CNRS, Université de Montpellier

Adam MOUNDIB

• PhD thesis project : Functional analysis of molecular interactions between West Nile virus and its human and avian hosts
• Supervisor: Nolwenn JOUVENET
• Structure d’accueil : Signalisation antivirale, Institut Pasteur

Laura Jeanne MULAS

• Projet de thèse : Modeling the dynamics of acute respiratory infections in the community
• Supervisors: Jérémie GUEDJ ; François BLANQUART
• Laboratory: Modeling and clinical investigation in infectious diseases (IAME) (UMR 1137), Inserm, Université Paris Cité, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord

Zoé REBELLE

• PhD thesis project: Contribution of Dicer, RNAi and regulatory RNAsRNAi and microRNAs to the antiviral response against Zika virus in trophoblast cells
• Supervisors: Sébastien PFEFFER ; Murielle MASSON
• Laboratory: Architecture et réactivité de l’ARN (UPR 9002), Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et cellulaire (IBMC), CNRS, Université de Strasbourg

Pauline LEROUX

• PhD thesis project: Impact de l’expression génique bactérienne et de la réponse immunitaire sur la gravité de la coqueluche
• Supervisors: Julie TOUBIANA
• Laboratory: Unité Biodiversité et Epidémiologie des Bactéries Pathogènes, Institut Pasteur

Ilary RIEDMILLER

• Projet de thèse : Host-targeted Antiviral strategies for Limiting Transmission of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus
• Supervisors: François-Loïc COSSET ; Solène DENOLLY
• Laboratory: Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), Inserm (U1111), CNRS (UMR5308), Université Lyon 1, ENS de Lyon

Federico FANELLI

• PhD thesis project: ESCAPE – Epidemiologically Significant Clusters for Adaptive Preparedness in the Ebola Epidemic
• Supervisor: Vittoria COLIZZA
• Laboratory:  « Surveillance and modelling of communicable disease », EPIcx lab (Epidemics in complex environments), Institut Pierre Louis d’épidémiologie et de santé publique (IPLESP) (UMR-S 1136), Inserm, Sorbonne Université

Ines MARECHAL

• PhD thesis project: Dissecting emerging Pteropine Orthoreovirus infection and fusion
• Supervisor: Olivier SCHWARTZ
• Laboratory:  Virus and immunity Unit, Institut Pasteur, CNRS