Nadine Cerf Bensoussan, pioneer of research into the gut and microbiome

When Nadine Cerf-Bensoussan began taking an interest in the gut in the 1980s, the research world was not fascinated by the topic, and probiotic microbes were not yet in vogue. The physician and researcher have already become convinced of the crucial role of this organ, of the intestinal microbiome and countless other microorganisms, especially bacteria. “With an area estimated between 35 and 70 square metres, the intestine is our main interface with the external environment.”She remembers.

End of 2023, Nadine Cerf Bensoussan He won the Inserm Grand Prize. “I wasn't expecting that at allAnd she trusts, “When Didier Samuel – the president of Enserm – called me, I thought he was going to ask me to deliver.”…She saw him “A reward for his field of research and his team. It is as if the intestines have taken a toll.”“, she says, smiling. “I already received an Inserm Research Award in 2014, which I thought was enough…”She adds with great humility.

“Nadine was right from the beginning that the immune system in contact with the intestinal mucosa plays a very important role. Thanks to many advances, it is making a significant contribution to this field.He describes pediatrician and immunologist Alan Fisher, president of the Academy of Sciences, who was his president. Yahya “Great researcher, determined, determined, passionate, loves her work.”

sense of togetherness

Director of Inserm Research At the helm of the Intestinal Immunology Laboratory at the Imagine Institute in Paris, the 68-year-old scientist is still trying to unravel the secrets of the intestinal immune system and intestinal diseases, particularly celiac disease, the autoimmune disorders associated with the disease. Eating gluten. She also flies the plane Interdisciplinary program on microorganisms at Inserm Since 2016, which will continue through priority research programs and equipment – ​​launched by the government as part of the France 2030 plan, and coordinated by Inrae and Inserm. “I don't know anyone in the world who has such an overview of the intestines.”Comments Fabienne Charbet-Henrion, a member of her team. However, Nadine Cerf Bensoussan has a strong sense of collectivism.

It was coincidence that led her to go into this field. She did her first internship in the Department of Immunology and Hematology headed by Claude Griselli at the Necker Hospital in Paris, where she worked with young children with high-risk immunological diseases.

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