Laleh Majlessi wins the 2016 Georges, Jacques and Elias Canetti Award

Since it was set up in 2006, the annual Georges, Jacques and Elias Canetti Award has provided support for Institut Pasteur scientists carrying out research in the field of infectious diseases, especially tuberculosis. The aim of the award is to recognize talent, encourage creation and reward the achievements of scientists.

The 2016 winner is Laleh Majlessi, an immunologist and research director in the Institut Pasteur's Integrated Mycobacterial Pathogenomics Unit, directed by Roland Brosch (himself the 2007 winner of the Georges, Jacques and Elias Canetti Award). The focus of Laleh Majlessi's research is host innate and adaptive immune responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, especially the influence of the specialized secretion systems in this bacillus, which causes tuberculosis in humans. These immunological data are contributing to the development of new tuberculosis vaccine candidates.

The award was presented on Tuesday October 18 by the actress Rachel Arditi, a distant cousin of the Canetti brothers, at a ceremony attended by Bernard, Johanna and Françoise Canetti and Institut Pasteur President Christian Bréchot.

To find out more, read the press release (in french)