education
Education Webinar: "The microbiome, a decisive player in mother-child health," on October 15, 2026
Did you know that the billions of microorganisms that colonize our body play a decisive role in pregnancy and throughout child development? The gut microbiota is now recognized as a key player in major public health issues such as child malnutrition, enteric infections and fragile immunity.
The Department of Education, in collaboration with the Institut Pasteur Alumni Association and the Francophone University Agency (AUF) – Western Europe, is pleased to invite you to attend its latest webinar entitled "The microbiome, a decisive player in mother-child health," from 2 to 3.30pm on October 15, 2026 via Zoom.
During the webinar, Pascale Vonaesch will address the following questions: How is an unborn child's immunity affected by the mother's microbiome, and to a lesser extent the father's? How does the microbiome develop in early childhood? How can microbiome imbalance increase the risk of obesity, asthma or malnutrition? What are the specific ways in which its composition can be altered to protect child health?
Pascale Vonaesch, a microbiologist and public health specialist (MSc, MPH, PhD), studies interactions between the host and the microbiota in the first years of life, especially in conditions such as malnutrition. After completing a PhD in Zurich, she worked for six years at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, in collaboration with several research institutes in Africa. She then formed her own research group at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. Five years ago, she joined the University of Lausanne as a professor, with her team, to pursue her research on the role of the microbiota in health and disease.
The webinar will be held in French and subtitled in real time in English or 35 other available languages (using artificial intelligence).
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Find out more about upcoming Education Webinars
Find out more: Institut Pasteur course on "Mother-Child Dyad: Current Evidence in a Global Perspective" Do you want to find out more about the challenges related to maternal and infant health? This intensive one-week Institut Pasteur course explores the major issues linked to maternal and infant health, with a focus on the first 1,000 days of life, the microbiome, epigenetics, epidemiology and immunology. Find out about the course and sign up For Institut Pasteur staff: course costs are covered by the research unit or the Human Resources Department. PhD students at the Institut Pasteur are eligible for a student rate if their application is accepted. | ||