NEWS
2011 - 10 - 03 Nobel Prize Jules Hoffmann, member of the Scientific board and Advisory board of CRP-Santé
Jules Hoffmann, current member of the Scientific Board and the Advisory Board of CRP-Santé was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology - Medicine on October 3, 2011 for his discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity.
Jules Hoffmann made his pioneering discovery in 1996, when he and his co-workers investigated how fruit flies combat infections. They had access to flies with mutations in several different genes including Toll, a gene previously found to be involved in embryonal development. When Hoffmann infected his fruit flies with bacteria or fungi, he discovered that Toll mutants died because they could not mount an effective defense. He was also able to conclude that the product of the Toll gene was involved in sensing pathogenic microorganisms and Toll activation was needed for successful defense against them.
Jules A. Hoffmann was born in Echternach, Luxembourg in 1941. He studied at the University of Strasbourg in France, where he obtained his PhD in 1969. Hoffmann, headed a research laboratory in Strasbourg, France, between 1974 and 2009 and served as president of the French National Academy of Sciences between 2007-08. Prof Hoffmann has been a member of the Scientific board of CRP-Santé since 2001 and a member of the advisory board since July 2003.