•    Valentina Venzin, recipient of the 2026 Branco Weiss Fellowship

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Valentina Venzin, a scientist in the Meta-organism Unit, is a recipient of the 2026 Branco Weiss Fellowship, a selective and prestigious grant program aimed at postdoctoral fellows in all fields of science and engineering.

Valentina Venzin is the first scientist hosted by a French institution to be selected as a Branco Weiss Fellow. In 2026, just eight researchers were selected out of 609 applicants. The grant can be up to 600,000 CHF over five years and offers recipients total freedom to carry out an independent and original research project.


Valentina's project focuses on a fundamental question that remains largely unexplored: why do men and women have different levels of susceptibility to infections, autoimmune diseases and cancer? She will explore the role of sex hormones in the early instruction of the immune system and the influence that hormone treatments can have on immune function and activity. By investigating the journey of immune cells from their origins to peripheral tissues and placing them in new hormonal environments, her aim is to determine where and when these differences are encoded, how they are maintained and whether they can be reprogrammed. Her research paves the way for precision medicine that incorporates biological sex as a key variable in understanding and treating disease.

Find out more about the Branco Weiss Fellowship

•    Simon Cauchemez, holder of the Collège de France's annual Liliane Bettencourt Chair in Technological Innovation

For the 2026-2027 academic year, Simon Cauchemez, Head of the Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Diseases Unit, has the honor of being appointed holder of the annual Liliane Bettencourt Chair in Technological Innovation, awarded by the Collège de France, with the following theme: "Modeling epidemics: data, methods, and public health issues." 

The course will examine the mathematical modeling tools used to study the spread of infectious diseases in human populations and the factors influencing epidemic dynamics – the structure of contact networks, immunity, super-spreading events, individual behaviors and inequalities. 
Over this series of sessions, Simon Cauchemez will also present the mathematical and statistical approaches used to estimate key transmission parameters based on diverse and incomplete data, and evaluate optimal control strategies. The course will be illustrated by numerous examples drawn from recent and historical epidemics of diseases including influenza, dengue, COVID-19, Zika, chikungunya, mpox, HIV, SARS and others.

The opening lecture will take place on January 21, 2027 at the Collège de France and will explore the following subject: “Studying the spread of infectious diseases: at the intersection of epidemiology, mathematics, and public health.”

	Image "It is a great honor to be selected for this chair. My appointment illustrates the growing role of mathematical models in studying the spread of infectious agents and supporting the response of health authorities to disease outbreaks."  Simon Cauchemez

See the program of upcoming lectures by Simon Cauchemez at the Collège de France (in French)

Find out more about the Liliane Bettencourt Chair in Technological Innovation (in French)

•    Nader Yatim, recipient of a 2026 ERC Starting Grant 

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On September 3, the European Research Council (ERC) unveiled the list of 421 recipients of ERC Starting Grants from 24 countries across Europe.

One of the 38 French applications selected is the proposal by Nader Yatim, selected for a future G5 entitled “Myeloid Cells, Inflammation and Aging”, for the HERITAGE project, aimed at investigating the mechanisms and consequences of retroelement dysregulation in aging.

Hematopoietic aging is a major driver of morbidity and mortality. A key characteristic of this process is unbalanced hematopoiesis leading to pathological myelopoiesis, a phenomenon closely linked to clonal hematopoiesis, metabolic reorganization and the epigenetic remodeling of hematopoietic stem cells. Yet little is known about the molecular mechanisms linking these alterations with inflammation and the emergence of age-related diseases. 
 
The project has three aims:
1.     To define how retroelements (REs) influence hematopoiesis during aging;
2.     To identify the epigenetic and metabolic factors behind RE dysregulation;
3.     To determine the consequences of RE dysregulation in humans.
 
The project will use a combination of state-of-the-art mouse models, human cohorts and technological innovations in single-cell and spatial transcriptomics to shed light on the origins and consequences of hematopoietic aging. It will reveal the close links between epigenetic alterations, metabolic reprogramming and retroelement activation and their consequences on immune dysfunction, paving the way for innovative treatments aimed at reducing the impact of aging and chronic inflammation.

Find out more about the results of the 2026 ERC Starting Grants