Infectious Diseases: Pathogen Biology and Immune Response (IRN PBIR)

The two coordinators of the IRN PBIR : François TROTTEIN (CIIL, left) and Pushkar SHARMA (NII, right)
During the first workshop that took place in New Delhi from 13 to 15 November 2026, scientitits planted a tree as a symbol of the collaboration.
Scientists of the IRN PBIR in New Delhi

The International Research Network “Infectious Diseases: Pathogen Biology and Immune Response” (IRN PBIR) brings together 11 French partners and 15 Indian partners. Supported by the CNRS since 2025, this network aims to structure and strengthen scientific collaborations dedicated to infectious agents, particularly viruses and parasites, as well as to the mechanisms of the immune response.

IRN PBIR is organized around two complementary research areas. The first seeks to improve understanding of pathogen biology (including endemic and emerging/re-emerging parasites and viruses) and their immune evasion mechanisms, with the goal of identifying new therapeutic strategies. The second focuses on the fundamental mechanisms of host immune responses and their role in eliminating infectious agents, with the objective of improving preventive and therapeutic approaches.

By bringing together leading French and Indian expertise, this network will foster scientific collaborations and promote the development of innovative joint projects. It will also support strategic reflection on ethical, legal, and technological challenges. The program will include the organization of transnational events for the sharing of knowledge, tools, and expertise, as well as personnel exchanges, particularly involving students and postdoctoral researchers.

For the year 2025, the first workshop took place in New Delhi from 13 to 15 November 2026 (Indo-French Workshop on Infectious Diseases: Pathogen Biology and Immune Responses*). Over the course of three days, researchers presented their research findings and collaborative projects. Discussion sessions dedicated to the future development directions of the IRN were also organized.

While awaiting the next workshop, the partners decided to establish a series of Franco-Indian webinars to maintain the connections and momentum generated during the New Delhi workshop, while also expanding the network to include other potential partners.

For the year 2026, exchange fellowships between India and France were awarded through a competitive call for proposals. Two projects received funding, enabling the hosting of a PhD student from IISER Pune at the Institute for Advanced Biosciences (IAB) in Grenoble, and supporting the mobility of a student from the Centre d'Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy (CIML) in Marseille to the National Institute of Immunology (NII) in India.

 

French partners

  • François TROTTEIN (Coordinateur) CIIL - Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille - INSERM U1019 - CNRS UMR9017 - Univ Lille Nord de France - Institut Pasteur de Lille
  • Cyrille BOTTE, Institut pour l’Avancée des Biosciences (IAB), UMR 5309, Grenoble
  • Chetan CHITNIS, Understanding Host-Parasite Interactions for Innovation of Novel Interventions (ParasitInnov), Institut Pasteur
  • Marc DALOD, Centre d'Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy (CIML), UMR 7280, Marseille
  • Ana-Rita GOMES, Laboratoire sur les interactions hôte-pathogène (LPHI), UMR 5294, Montpellier
  • Branka HORVAT, Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), UMR 5308, Lyon
  • Sofia KOSSIDA, Institut de Génétique Humaine (IGH), UMR 9002, Montpellier
  • Agnès LEHUEN, Institut Cochin, UMR 8104, Paris
  • Bruno PITARD, Immunologie et nouveaux concepts en immunothérapie (INCIT), EMR6001, Nantes
  • Ovidiu RADULESCU, Laboratoire sur les interactions hôte-pathogène (LPHI), UMR 5294, Montpellier
  • Julie TOMAS, Centre d'Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy (CIML), UMR 7280, Marseille
     

Indian Partners

  • Pushkar SHARMA (Co-Cordinateur), The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Amit AWASTHI, Translational Health Science and Technology Institute, THSTI, Faridabad
  • Anmol CHANDELE, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi
  • Devram GHORPADE, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Nimesh GUPTA, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Krishanpal KARMODIYA, Indian Institute of Science Education and research (IISER), Pune
  • Aneeshkumar ARIMBASSERI, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Debasisa MOHANTY, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Asif MOHMMED, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi
  • Veena PATIL, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Sweety SAMAL, Translational Health Science and Technology Institute, THSTI, Faridabad
  • Devinder SEGHAL, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Shantiswarup SINGHA, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
  • Easwaran SREEKUMAR, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB), Thiruvananthapuram
  • Praful Kumar TAILOR, The National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi