awards
Aude Bernheim, new EMBO member, and "StemAAV" project, winner of a 2026 ERC Proof of Concept Grant
• Aude Bernheim elected as a member of the European Molecular Biology Organization
The aim of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is to promote excellence in biology by supporting talented researchers at all stages of their careers, stimulating dialog and encouraging the development of an outstanding scientific environment in the field of life sciences.
Some 50 to 60 researchers, leaders in their fields, join EMBO each year after being elected for life in a highly selective process by the organization's members. Together with the other members, they play a fundamental role in organizing and influencing the direction of European biology research. In total the organization has more than 2,100 members.
On June 30, the prestigious organization announced that it would be electing 71 new members, including Aude Bernheim, Head of the Molecular Diversity of Microbes five-year group.
Aude Bernheim's team explores molecular diversity and the evolution of immunity in the living world. The team focuses on antiviral defense mechanisms in bacteria to elucidate the broad principles of immune function, trace ancestral links with the innate immune systems of eukaryotes and discover new genes, mechanisms and molecules involved in immunity in bacteria and eukaryotes, including humans.
• "StemAAV" project awarded a 2026 ERC Proof of Concept Grant
ERC Proof of Concept Grants, part of the Horizon Europe framework program, are aimed at scientists who have already received an ERC grant (Starting, Consolidator, Advanced or Synergy) that is still ongoing or ended less than a year ago, with the aim of applying the results of their research, developing innovation potential and exploring possibilities for bringing products to market. Proof of Concept grants, worth €150,000 for a maximum period of 18 months, support the medical, commercial and social potential of ERC-funded projects.
In the first round of Proof of Concept Grants for 2026, the European Research Council (ERC) selected 182 projects, including 18 in France.
This year's winners include the "StemAAV" project (Targeted Genetic Manipulation of Muscle Stem Cells In Vivo Towards New Treatment Strategies Against Muscular Dystrophies), led by Brendan Evano, a scientist in the Stem Cells and Development Unit led by Shahragim Tajbakhsh. The aim of this project is to establish an adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy platform that targets specific receptors on cells of interest enabling the selective delivery of therapeutic payloads to muscle stem cells (MuSCs) in vivo. By targeting the regenerative stem cell compartment rather than differentiated muscle fibers, this approach seeks a more long-lasting correction of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) and other dystrophies, while reducing non-targeted transduction of other tissues and organs. This proof-of-concept project aims to generate and validate first-generation AAV vectors that target MuSCs and that can be tested in vivo, paving the way for subsequent translational development. The project was formulated with support from the Department of Applications of Research and Relations with Industrials (DARRI; Shauna Katz et al.) and builds on the ERC Advanced Grant STENIPATH. It is being carried out in close collaboration with Jessica Hartmann and the Buchholz lab at the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut (Germany), which contributes AAV engineering expertise.