The Mediterranean rim - The Institut Pasteur and the Institut Pasteur International Network
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Region
The Institut Pasteur
and the Institut Pasteur
International Network
The Mediterranean rim
«K
nowledge is the heritage
of humanity »
Louis Pasteur
The Mediterranean rim
Installed in eight countries of the Mediterranean rim, the
Institut Pasteur International Network (RIIP) conducts
numerous collaborations with various healthcare and
research bodies in the countries concerned.
The actions undertaken by the international network aim to
strengthen research and training and help in the fight against
Institut Pasteur – Cenci
Bolognetti Foundation the major diseases that affect the region.
•U
niversity of Rome
« La Sapienza »
• Founded in 1956 > A number of collaborations
• 50 persons The Institut Pasteur has forged strong links in the Mediterranean with seven
www.istitutopasteur.it member institutes from the Institut Pasteur International Network in the Euro-
Mediterranean region: Algeria, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Morocco, Romania and
Hellenic Institut Pasteur Tunisia. It also has a privileged relationship with various research and healthcare
• Athens, Greece
• Founded in 1919
bodies in Israel, Egypt and Lebanon.
• 150 persons The aim of these partnerships is two-fold:
www.pasteur.gr • scientific collaboration in the face of similar problems and contribution to
National reference centre training and teaching
for leishmaniasis
• participation in the development of a Euro-Mediterranean forum for health and
solidarity within the context of the Union for the Mediterranean.
Institut Pasteur in Algeria
• Algiers
• Founded in 1894
• 830 persons Presentation of the region
www.pasteur.dz Members of the Union for the Mediterranean (UPM)
Regional reference laboratory Member states of the European Union
for tuberculosis. Centre for and UPM
anti-rabies vaccination and
UPM Member States Brussels
international vaccinations
Lille
Paris
Observer State
Institut Pasteur in Tunis Bucharest
Institutes from the Rome Sofia
• Tunisia
• Founded in 1893 Institut Pasteur
International Network
• 550 persons Casablanca Algiers Athens
Tunis
WHO collaborative centre
for research and training on
leishmaniasis infections and anti-
rabies vaccination centre
Region
RIIP research
in the Mediterranean
The huge healthcare issues in the region form the subject of
basic research, surveillance and public health programmes.
Hepatitis B virus > Viral hepatitis
Research into the genetic diversity of the hepatitis B virus and improvements in
The Franco- diagnosis connect several teams in Paris, Athens and Romania, opening up new
Egyptian network perspectives in the development of a vaccine.
of research into The programmes conducted also feature:
the hepatitis C • interaction of the C and G virus with their host cells (Paris, Tunis, Athens),
virus • the development of bioinformatic tools of analysis (Institut Pasteur - Cenci
The Institut Pasteur Bolognetti Foundation),
teams are conducting a • the epidemiological study of hepatitis E (Morocco, Algeria, Tunis),
project on hepatitis in
Egypt, which is financed • the impact of vaccination on the epidemiology of hepatitis B (Tunis, Morocco),
by the ANRS (Agence • the aetiologies of hepatocellular carcinomas (Morocco, Algeria, Tunis, Paris).
Nationale de Recherches
sur le Sida et les
hépatites virales). > Tuberculosis
The incidence levels in this The Institut Pasteur International Network is involved in national programmes
country are amongst the
in the fight against tuberculosis and plays an active part in the diagnosis and
highest in the world.
An ANRS research site, surveillance of this infection, especially in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.
dedicated to research They participate in research into new anti-tuberculosis vaccines, the epidemiology
into these diseases,
opened in Cairo in 2007.
of and genetic susceptibility to this disease. Finally, in collaboration with the
Institut Pasteur in Paris, they study the mechanisms for acquiring resistance.
EpiSouth is a network of epidemiology laboratories
•O bjectives: surveillance of transmissible diseases across 27 countries in the
Mediterranean and Balkans
• Three axes of surveillance:
- epidemic surveillance,
- vaccine-preventable diseases,
- emergent zoonoses.
Within this project, the Institut Pasteur is involved in the creation of a
network of reference laboratories.
To find out more: www.episouth.org
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Region
> Viruses and cancer
The activities of the diagnosis laboratories on viruses and cancers focus on:
• the Epstein-Barr virus associated with cancer of the nasopharynx and lymphoma;
• the papilloma viruses associated with cancer of the neck of the uterus (physiopathology,
screening, vaccination and treatment);
• the viruses responsible for herpes, especially in the context of opportunistic AIDs
infections.
The HIV-1 virus on the surface
of a lymphocyte
The Pasteur-Weizmann scientific collaboration
Launched in 1975, the « Pasteur-Weizmann » collaboration is performed
via an agreement between the Institut Pasteur, the Weizmann Institute
(Rehovot, Israel) and the Pasteur-Weizmann Association.
The objective of this collaboration is to promote and strengthen high-level
exchanges between researchers in the two institutes within the public health
domain, cancer in particular: training, short-term or post-doctoral fellowships,
joint projects or scientific meetings.
An initial multicentre research programme involving the Institut Pasteur,
the Weizmann Institute and the Mario Negri Institute (Milan, Italy) has been
launched into the development of new anti-cancer compounds derived from
European projects retinoic acid.
The Institut Pasteur
and the Institut Pasteur
International Network
are involved in several > Genetic diseases
European projects within Several diseases are studied in the various institutes of the network and may become
the Mediterranean region:
• project on
part of an inter-institutional collaboration:
Leishmaniasis • thalassaemias and disorders of the red blood cells;
infections (Greece, • neurosensory disorders (deafness and retinitis pigmentosa);
Algeria, Tunisia)
• project on emerging
• infertility;
diseases (Italy, • diabetes.
Romania, Algeria)
• project on neuro-
transmitters (Greece) > Leishmaniasis infections
• EpiSouth surveillance An international-scale project is being conducted jointly by Athens, Paris, Tunis
project and Morocco. This project aims to develop epidemiological studies, and tools for the
diagnosis and control of Leishmaniasis infections. In parallel, it will study the clinical
expression of the disease in order to improve vaccination, and will also examine the
biology of the parasites, their diversity and virulence.
Another project, coordinated by the Institut Pasteur in Tunis, analyses the cellular
and molecular processes which may underlie the resistance or sensitivity of mice to
the infection.
Region
> Rabies
The Institut Pasteur International Network has two anti-rabies vaccination centres
in the region, in Morocco and Algeria, to treat people who have been in contact with
suspect animals. In addition, the institutes in Algeria and Tunis are involved in the
development of new vaccines.
The network is also concerned with epidemiological studies. A team in Paris, in
association with the Mateu Orfila Foundation of the Balearic Islands and the University
of Barcelona, is studying the infection dynamics of colonies of bald mice in Spain.
Rabies virus
Controlling rabies
The RABMEDCONTROL project of the European Union involves a number of
N.B.
research, public health and veterinary institutions in nine countries in the
• The Institut Pasteur in Mediterranean rim.
Algeria and Morocco,
in association with the The aim of the project is to:
WHO Collaborative Centre • collect epidemiological and virological data on human and animal rabies in
for Rabies in Paris, form North Africa;
part of the AfroREB • clarify the epidemiology of this infection;
network, which shares • prevent the disease;
information and improves • treat the disease.
health campaigns in the
countries affected. The research will enable a better understanding of the ecological aspects of dog
and Chiroptera populations (bald mice), as well as the human behaviours that
influence the dynamics of rabies.
These multi-disciplinary data will then lead to recommendations for controlling
rabies in North Africa.
The Institut Pasteur, the Institut Pasteur in Tunis, the Institut Pasteur in
Morocco and the Institut Pasteur in Algeria are actively involved.
To find out more: www.rabmedcontrol.org
> Venoms and toxins
Venoms provide a wide area for investigation and have a number of biological effects:
toxicity, coagulation, anti-coagulation, haemorrhage, necrosis, oedema.
The institutes in Algeria, Morocco and Tunis, which produce anti-venom sera, were
recently linked to research novel compounds for therapeutic use and the optimisation
of sera, with the support of the WHO.
Within the framework of a second programme with the teams in Tunisia, the toxins
isolated from scorpion venom have advanced research into autoimmune diseases such
as multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.
Region
Training
The Institut Pasteur International Network also
has the mission of strengthening the human
resources capacities in the countries of the
Mediterranean rim.
Research training programmes (specific teaching, workshops)
are developed in partnership with the universities and other local
parties. Initially intended for researchers in the network, they are
now accessible to all.
Section of a macrophage
> Diverse teaching and training infected by Leishmania
• Immunology: advanced course on Mediterranean Immunology, « From basic immu-
nology to antiparasitic immunology» (Algiers) and course in immuno-physiology of
infections (Algiers), in partnership with the French Association of Immunology (SFI).
• Mycobacteriology: course in medical mycobacteriology and training in mycobacte-
riological techniques (Algiers). This programme is financed by the Institut Pasteur, the
WHO and the International Union in the fight against Tuberculosis and Respiratory
Diseases.
• Bioinformatics: Bioinformatic analysis of sequencing data (Casablanca); Bioinforma-
tics and comparative genomic analysis (Tunis).
• Resistance to antibiotics: basic courses on the mechanisms of resistance to
antibiotics, practical studies based on the discovery and identification of genes of
resistance (Casablanca).
• The EPIM programme (Epidemiology of intervention and applied informatics in
the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean which border rivers) initiated by the Institut
Pasteur, in partnership with the Agency for Preventative Medicine (AMP), aims to
strengthen epidemiological surveillance in this region.
Region
Union for the Mediterranean
The Union for the Mediterranean (UPM) is an international inter-govern- THE FIGURES
mental organization with a regional objective. Founded on 13 July 2008, • 90% of the 1 500 000
and launched by the French President, it gathers together the 27 member cases of cutaneous
states of the European Union and 17 states bordering the Mediterranean leishmaniasis infections
Sea. Higher education and healthcare research are among the six priorities registered each year
defined by the UPM. internationally are
The Institut Pasteur is strongly involved in the following areas: recorded in the
• r esearch into infectious and emerging diseases (leishmaniasis infections, Mediterranean basin.
tuberculosis, rabies etc.), genetic diseases and cancer; • 300 cases of human
• monitoring and surveillance of these diseases; rabies are counted each
• training of healthcare professionals. year in the region.
> The main healthcare issues
•T
uberculosis is still the most deadly disease among adults
in the Eastern Mediterranean, where it causes more than
Phagocytosis of bacteria
110 000 deaths each year.
by a macrophage Institut Pasteur in Morocco
•L
eishmaniasis infections are caused by various parasites • Tangiers and Casablanca
• Founded in 1911 (Tangiers)
of the Leishmania species and are transmitted by the bites and 1929 (Casablanca)
of sandflies that are very widespread in the Mediterranean • 250 persons
area. These bites cause very debilitating skin or visceral www.pasteur.dz
infections, which may even prove fatal if not treated. Stephan Angeloff Institute
• Sofia, Bulgaria
The countries of the Mediterranean are affected to varying • Founded in 1947
degrees by: • 160 persons
www.microbio.bas.bg
• all the viral hepatitis types known to date (A, B, C, Delta,
E and G). Cantacuzène Institute
•p oisoning due to scorpion or snake bite in the Maghreb • Bucarest, Romania
and Near East, which represents another serious public • Founded in 1901
• 1 200 persons
health issue due to the frequency and severity of the cases.
www.cantacuzino.ro
Papillomavirus These countries are also facing an increase in the number: Institut Pasteur in Lille
• of cancers • Lille
• Founded in 1894
• of genetic diseases (diabetes, infertility etc.) into which • 790 persons
several teams from RIIP are undertaking studies. www.pasteur-lille.fr
Region
Institut Pasteur :
a worldwide presence
A certified not-for profit private foundation, the Institut
Pasteur exercises three missions in the service of the public
good since its creation in 1887: research, public health, and
training.
At the nexus of several disciplines, including microbiology, immunology and
molecular biology, it is one of the foremost centres of biomedical research
CONTACTS: worldwide. Ten Pasteurian scientists have been named laureates of the Nobel Prize
INSTITUT PASTEUR in physiology or medicine.
25 - 28, rue de Docteur Roux
75724 Paris Cedex 15
FRANCE Open to the world, the Institut Pasteur is at the heart of an International Network
Phone: +33 (0)1 40 61 36 92 of some thirty institutes on every continent, most of which are independent
Fax: +33 (0)1 45 68 89 52 entities governed by their national authorities.
E-mail: reseau@pasteur.fr
Website: These institutes are associated by partnerships and cooperation agreements
www.pasteur-international.org
www.pasteur.fr covering scientific research, training and public health services, and they share
common values and objectives.
Photo credit: Institut Pasteur • Design: www.e l t o n.fr • February 2011
Not-for profit foundation authorised to receive donations and bequests
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