Prix de la Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale 2024: Florence Besse, Claudine Blin and Laurent Yvan-Charvet honored

Created on the initiative of benefactors who have invested in the fight against disease through a donation, gift or bequest, these Awards are intended to support research in a designated field. They perpetuate the wishes of their donors, whose name they bear, or that of a loved one to whom they wish to pay tribute. The winners are selected by specialized juries with expertise in the field concerned.

Université Côte d'Azur congratulates its 3 2024 winners.

Florence Besse - Rachel Ajzen and Léon Iagolnitzer Prize

This €20,000 prize supports fundamental research into understanding the mechanisms of aging, with particular reference to the brain under normal and pathological conditions.

Florence Besse is CNRS research director, in charge of the "Post-transcriptional control of neuronal plasticity in Drosophila" team at the Institut de Biologie Valrose (Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Inserm), which she heads.

Explaining the formation of RNA granules linked to brain aging
Her work focuses on the regulation of RNA molecules during cerebral aging. These are the intermediaries, or copies of genes, from which the proteins needed by the cell are synthesized. His team discovered that, during normal aging, proteins and RNA molecules progressively aggregate, forming granules that grow inside neurons. As a result, fewer proteins are produced from the RNA "sequestered" in the granules. His investigations are continuing to identify precisely the molecules involved and understand the impact of this hitherto unknown regulation on brain ageing.

Claudine Blin - Fondation Guillaumat-Piel Prize 2

This €40,000 prize comes from a bequest by Louise Guillaumat. It is intended to support biomedical research into osteoarticular diseases.

Claudine Blin-Wakkach is Director of Research at Inserm, in charge of the "Osteoimmunology, Niches and Inflammation" team at the Molecular Physiomedicine Laboratory (CNRS - Université Côte d'Azur), which she heads in Nice.

Osteoporosis and chronic inflammation: the same cell involved
Her team is seeking to elucidate how certain bone cells, known as osteoclasts, modulate the immune system. In healthy bone tissue, which is constantly being renewed, osteoclasts are responsible for breaking down old bone. But the team discovered that in osteoporosis or chronic inflammatory diseases (such as arthritis or Crohn's disease), certain osteoclasts also play an immune role, exacerbating inflammation. Targeting them can reduce this deleterious effect. The team is now focusing on understanding the mechanisms involved. Their hope is to pave the way for innovative treatments with fewer adverse effects in these widespread diseases.

Laurent Yvan-Charvet, Jean-Paul Binet Prize

The €12,000 Jean-Paul Binet Prize was donated by Jean-Paul Binet. It is intended to reward work on clinical or experimental research into cardiovascular pathologies or xenografts.

Laurent Yvan-Charvet is Director of Research at Inserm, and co-leader of the "Hematometabolism and Metabolic Inflammation" team at the Centre Méditerranéum in Paris.ta-inflammation" team at the Centre Méditerranéen de Médecine Moléculaire - C3M (Inserm - Université Côte d'Azur), in Nice.

Unravelling the metabolic perturbations at the root of vascular inflammation
Its work aims to decipher the mechanisms that lead to cardiovascular disease - the world's leading cause of death. In particular, the team studies atherosclerosis, a blockage of blood vessels by lipid deposits associated with metabolic and immune dysfunctions. He and his team recently discovered that a disturbance in the metabolism of our body's most abundant amino acid, glutamine, was involved in the deleterious inflammation of blood vessels. The aim now is to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic tools to complement the adoption of better dietary habits.