TRAINING

POSITIONS HELD

DISTINCTIONS / RESPONSIBILITIES

COMPETENCES / EXPERTISE

Jean-Claude Sirard earned his PhD in 1995 from the University of Paris and the Pasteur Institute. From 1991 to 1998, he studied the bacterial pathogenesis of Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax. He then trained as a postdoctoral fellow at the Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research (ISREC) in Lausanne (1998–2003), focusing on the interaction between intestinal epithelial cells and bacterial pathogens such as Salmonella enterica. A pioneer in the discovery of flagellin as a key bacterial component that triggers pro-inflammatory responses in mammals, he joined the Institut Pasteur de Lille in 2003 as a laureate of the Young Investigator program ATIPE/AVENIR. He subsequently secured a tenure position at Inserm to develop research on epithelial innate immunity. His team investigates the role of immune cells and mediators in host defense against respiratory infections caused by antibiotic-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae and Klebsiella pneumoniae, with a focus on developing novel adjuvants and vaccines to enhance respiratory innate immunity for both prophylactic and therapeutic applications.