Our approaches to research on key medical issues

Faced with major public health challenges affecting millions of people throughout the world, the Institut Pasteur is committed to conducting outstanding, ambitious, multidisciplinary, human-centered, independent research that is firmly focused on the future. 

We take a holistic approach to our research, which includes efforts to shed light on infectious and chronic diseases, explore novel, as yet under-investigated avenues of research, and discover real-world solutions for patients. 

Since 1888, our scientists have been working tirelessly to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases.
 

A holistic view of the living world: understanding diseases to fight them more effectively

• Infectious diseases: 

Efforts to tackle infectious diseases have been central to the Institut Pasteur's mission since 1887. Almost 80% of our research teams work in this area, investigating over 160 infectious agents. 
Our scientists scrutinize viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi to shed light on the mechanisms used by these microorganisms to invade our bodies, evade our immune systems, and cause disease. Why are some pathogens more virulent than others? How do they evolve to bypass our defenses or resist treatment? These are all fundamental questions whose answers pave the way for novel therapeutic and vaccine strategies.

Our work is focused on four main types of threats: 

• High-mortality diseases: tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, malaria, and severe respiratory infections. 
• Diseases with a high public health impact: viral hepatitis, foodborne infections (salmonellosis, listeriosis), opportunistic infections (candidiasis). 
• Neglected infectious diseases: leishmaniasis, dengue, chikungunya, Lassa fever, mpox, shigellosis. 
• Diseases with epidemic potential: COVID-19, influenza, and hemorrhagic fevers (e.g. Ebola) capable of global spread. 

This approach also encompasses outbreak surveillance and efforts to understand the phenomena of infectious disease emergence and re-emergence, as seen in the COVID-19 pandemic and new disease outbreaks regularly occurring throughout the world (Ebola, plague, hantavirus, mpox, etc.). By investigating the way in which pathogens circulate between animals and humans, our teams are also contributing to the implementation of a "One Health" approach, whereby human, animal and environmental health are inextricably linked.
 

• Non-communicable diseases and their causes: 

Chronic diseases such as cancer, inflammatory diseases, diabetes, allergies and autoimmune diseases are currently the world's leading cause of death. The Institut Pasteur is committed to deciphering their underlying biological mechanisms such as deregulation of the immune system, genetic factors, and environmental and lifestyle influences, to improve prevention and develop novel therapeutic strategies.
 

Innovative approaches, including large-scale genomics, computational biology and artificial intelligence, are creating new opportunities to help us understand why some people develop a disease while others avoid it despite being exposed to the same risk factors.
 

Our scientists scrutinize the specific ways in which individuals respond to infections based on a whole range of factors such as genetics, sex, age, lifestyle and diet. This is a key focus for the "Milieu Intérieur" LabEx, a trailblazing Institut Pasteur program on human immune response variability.
 

As well as… pioneering approaches to the microbiota, aging and mother-child health

• The microbiota: a key factor in human health

The billions of microorganisms living in our bodies play a fundamental role in our immunity and metabolism. The Institut Pasteur is at the forefront of microbiota research. Around forty teams are investigating this area through our Microbiome Program (IM2P). 

Our teams explore links between microbiota composition and the development of various conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, allergies, autism spectrum disorder and many more. 
 

• Aging: exploration at the frontiers of scientific knowledge

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the proportion of people aged over 60 is set to double worldwide between 2000 and 2050. Aging, characterized by a progressive decline in physiological functions, remains a largely unexplored area at the frontiers of scientific knowledge. Cross-disciplinary teams at the Institut Pasteur are exploring its fundamental mechanisms (cellular senescence, DNA repair, stem cell biology). We are seeking to improve understanding of the impact of aging on immunity, vulnerability to infection and response to vaccines, with a view to developing preventive and therapeutic approaches tailored to older people.

• Mother and child health: a field of research full of promise

The mother-child relationship is one of the Institut Pasteur's current scientific priorities. The first 1,000 days of life, from conception to age two, have a lasting impact on health trajectories.Any disruptions can have long-term effects on a child's health (allergies, neurodevelopmental disorders, asthma, diabetes, etc.). 

Our teams are investigating how the microbiome, nutrition and the maternal immune system shape fetal and newborn infant development. One recent discovery hints at the potential offered by this research area: the immune system regulates breast milk production. 

This ambitious program draws on partnerships with the Institut Necker-Enfants Malades (INEM), Imagine Institute, and Université Paris Cité and its Institute of Women's Health, and chimes with French political priorities around the first 1,000 days of life.
 

From basic to clinical research: identifying tangible solutions for treatment

All our research is carried out in pursuit of one ultimate aim: curing patients or easing their suffering. Research at the Institut Pasteur does not end at the doors to its laboratories.

Our teams are involved in clinical research, working closely with partner hospitals to ensure that scientific discoveries translate into genuine benefits for patients. To that end, we collaborate with university hospital institutes such as the Institut reConnect (hearing and speech), Robert Debré Hospital (autism spectrum disorder) and the Robert Debré Child Brain Institute (cognitive development). 

We are also strengthening our clinical research partnerships in regions such as the French West Indies, French Guiana and New Caledonia (our 3 affiliated institutes) and also with the entire Pasteur Network.

In 2026, novel vaccine candidates for diseases against which no effective protection is currently available progressed to advanced test phases: 

• A chikungunya vaccine designed to be produced locally in Africa and South America has successfully completed Phase I and II clinical trials, and a Phase I/III trial is now in preparation. 
• Two vaccines for viral hemorrhagic fevers are currently being developed using our MOPEVAC pandemic preparedness platform.
  • A single pentavalent vaccine targeting five hemorrhagic fevers in South America.
  • A vaccine for Lassa fever (endemic in West Africa) and other arenaviruses. 
• Several grants have recently been secured for research into next-generation messenger RNA malaria vaccines that target several stages of the life cycle of the parasite responsible for this disease to offer better protection. 

... Promoting research that benefits everyone! 

This continuum from laboratory to patient bedside and vice versa is the hallmark of the Institut Pasteur approach: a brand of science that is rigorous, open to the world, and benefits everyone.

All our approaches share the common goal of generating fundamental knowledge to promote human health. The Institut Pasteur combines scientific excellence, technological innovation and international collaboration to meet its commitment of turning its understanding of diseases into real-world solutions accessible to patients throughout the world.