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On a proposal of the President, the Board of Governors Bureau which met on Wednesday June 17, approved the appointment of Guillaume Duménil as the next Scientific Director of the Institut Pasteur. He will take office on January 1st, 2027, and, in the meantime, will prepare for his role by undertaking a thorough consultation and collective analysis.

"Guillaume Dumenil’s scientific experience and his in-depth knowledge of the Institut Pasteur – acquired through his academic training, his career as a researcher and his commitment as a department Head and to initiatives supporting research – will be invaluable assets in this essential role as Scientific Director. Guillaume Duménil will help strengthen the steering of the Institut's scientific strategy and facilitate the deployment of its strategic plan, Pasteur 2030, working closely with all our scientific teams and in close coordination with the entire management team. He will play a key role in fostering dialogue between management and the scientific teams. Before taking up his position in early 2027, Guillaume Duménil will work closely not only with Patrick Trieu-Cuot but also with all the department heads and numerous colleagues in order to refine the objectives of his future mission to strengthen the Scientific Department. I would like to warmly thank Patrick Trieu-Cuot for his strong commitment to the institution, as well as for his constant dedication to protect the Institute and support its scientific community. I look forward to working with Guillaume Duménil, in whom I place my full trust to protect and support Institut Pasteur science, and to tackle, alongside all of us, the challenges we face today".

Yasmine Belkaid, President of the Institut Pasteur
 

Currently Head of the Department of Cell Biology and Infection, Guillaume Duménil has been leading the Pathogenesis of Vascular Infections Unit (Institut Pasteur/Inserm 1225) since 2015. This unit studies the interactions between pathogenic bacteria and blood vessels in conditions such as septicemia and meningitis. Graduated of the University of Paris XI Orsay, Guillaume Duménil first focused on the molecular mechanisms of Shigella-related infectious diseases during his doctoral work, conducted jointly in the Cytokine Signalling Unit led by Sandra Pellegrini and in the Molecular Microbial Pathogenesis Unit led by Philippe Sansonetti. He subsequently undertook four years of postdoctoral research at Tufts University in Boston, in Ralph Isberg's laboratory, where he studied Legionella pneumophila, the bacterium responsible for Legionnaires' disease. Upon returning to France, he joined Inserm in 2002 to study invasive meningococcal infections at Necker-Enfants Malades School of Medicine. In 2009, he launched his own laboratory with funding from the ATIP-Avenir programme, conducting his research at the Paris Cardiovascular Research Center (PARCC) at the Georges Pompidou European Hospital. Guillaume Duménil joined the Institut Pasteur in 2015 to establish and lead his current unit and became Head of Inserm Unit 1225 in 2019.

His work has been recognized with numerous scientific distinctions, including the Louis Pasteur Medal from the French Academy of Sciences (2013), the Jean Hamburger Grand Prize in Medicine and Medical Research from the City of Paris (2014), the Pasteur Vallery-Radot Prize from the Bibliothèque nationale de France (2019) and the Grand Prize of the NRJ-Institut de France Foundation (2021). Guillaume Duménil is also the recipient of an ERC Starting Grant (2012) and an ERC Advanced Grant (2022). He has furthermore been a member of the Academia Europaea since 2020 and of EMBO since 2024.

Guillaume Duménil is also closely involved in fostering research activities within the Institut through several initiatives, including Qbio, a quantitative biology programme launched in 2016 and still very active, designed to guide scientists trained in physics towards biological questions and to encourage biologists to integrate quantitative models into their research. He is also a member of Institut Pasteur's Scientific Outreach Committee, established in 2022 to support the implementation of science communication and outreach activities centred on the issues, methods and results of Institut Pasteur's research projects — an active initiative to open science up to society.

Guillaume Duménil will bring his expertise, energy and creativity to the service of on Institut Pasteur's scientific strategy, working and collaborating with the various governance bodies and heads of the relevant structures. His appointment ensures and reinforces the continuity of the various missions of the Scientific Department, and in particular:

• The coordination of the implementation of the Pasteur 2030 strategic plan, in collaboration with the leaders of the priority areas,

• The amplification and promotion of the continuum between fundamental research, translational research and public health,

• Supporting the entire scientific community in its commitment to health, by fostering collaboration, interdisciplinarity, technology and innovation,

• The recruitment of new scientific talent,

• The development of partnerships and dialogue with the national and international ecosystem of research institutions,

• The deployment of incentive programmes.

"More than ever, the Institut Pasteur and the world of research face major challenges, but also considerable opportunities. I am very pleased to join the management team and to work with all our teams to meet the former and seize the latter, so that our campus remains this unique place of excellent research, training and exchange. The Scientific Department has a central role to play in this regard, and it is an honor to carry out this mission."

Guillaume Duménil