Prof. Christian Bréchot
 |
Prof. Christian Bréchot is vice-president (since 2008) in charge of Medical and Scientific affairs at Institut Mérieux, a large holding company which merges the efforts of five companies involved in in vitro diagnostics, preventive and therapeutic vaccines, as well as food safety. Institut Mérieux’s main priorities are focused on infectious diseases, cancer and - to a more limited extent - cardiovascular diseases and stroke, and food and water safety.
Prof. Bréchot was General Director (2001-2007) of Inserm, the French National Agency for biomedical research. He obtained his Ph.D in biochemistry from the University of Paris VII in 1985. In 1989 he became full professor of Cell Biology and Hepatology, and in1997 he was appointed head of the clinical department of liver diseases at the Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital.
His research has been mainly focused on viral hepatitis: hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV), particularly with regard to their role in liver cancer. Prof. Bréchot has maintained research activities with the creation in 2005 of a novel research unit in the Hepato-Biliary Centre in Villejuif, a leading European centre for liver transplantation near Paris. He was also head of the National Reference Centre on viral hepatitis from 1998 to 2001.
Prof. Bréchot has been member of numerous scientific committees and societies and has received prestigious awards. He is the author of over 350 articles, obtained - through his research - 13 patents, and contributed to the creation of two biotech companies: Metagenex and ALFACT Innovatio.