The Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal becomes the first faculty to join the Pasteur Network

The Pasteur Network (PN) and the Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal (UdeM) are announcing the Faculty’s membership in this international network as an associate member. The alliance opens the way to new research and training collaborations around the world, to the benefit of the scientific communities of both organizations.

Approved by the Pasteur Network General Assembly, which met in Brussels on June 26, 2026, this associate membership will foster the pooling of complementary expertise across several fields of research, from fundamental research to population health.

With its 15 departments and 3 schools, the Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal trains more than 2,500 graduate students and has some 5,000 faculty members, including 2,500 clinical teaching staff.

The Faculty becomes the network’s second member in North America, after the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), strengthening its presence on the continent.

“A network is measured not only by the number of its members, but by what we can achieve together. The Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal joins the Pasteur Network bringing together strong fundamental research, world-class university hospitals, and a shared commitment to translating scientific discoveries into better patient care. We share a conviction that is more important than ever: in the face of today’s complex health challenges, collaboration is not a choice, it is a necessity”

Mario Moreira, President of the Pasteur Network

“From fundamental discovery to direct care for the population, research reaches its full potential when it can circulate, be shared and be translated into concrete solutions. By joining the Pasteur Network, we want to multiply international collaborations and pool our expertise to better meet the major health challenges of today and tomorrow.”

Dr. Patrick Cossette, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, UdeM

Complementary expertise to meet major health challenges

Several of the Faculty’s research strengths echo the Pasteur Network’s scientific priorities and offer prospects for collaboration:

• Understanding the fundamental mechanisms of life: virus structure, RNA biology, microbial genomics and bacteriophages, brain function and neurodegenerative diseases. This work advances knowledge to better prevent, detect and treat disease.
• Preparing for pandemics: work combining bacteriology, microscopy and artificial intelligence makes it possible to analyze complex bacterial phenotypes and identify new antimicrobials. Teams in virology and immunology also play a key role in understanding infectious diseases and responding to health threats, as their contribution during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated.
• Maternal and child health: clinical research teams at the Faculty lead a Canadian clinical trials network for pregnant women and children, drawing in particular on biobanks, data governance mechanisms and surveillance systems.
• Artificial intelligence and digital health: work in precision health draws on prediction, diagnostic and clinical decision-support tools that combine hospital data, omics data and imaging data.
• One Health: this cross-faculty approach aims to break down barriers between areas of expertise in order to better monitor, prevent and act on major health issues.

New opportunities for connection and training

Associate membership in the Pasteur Network will allow the Faculty’s research community and its next generation of scientists to take part in training, exchange and collaboration activities. Researchers, scientific staff and graduate students will be eligible in particular for Pasteur Network courses and training, the SPARK program supporting early-career scientists, the scientific working groups and the PNLink collaborative platform. They will also benefit from new opportunities for networking, student mobility and project development with other PN members.

In return, membership will give Pasteur Network members access to expertise, infrastructure and activities developed by the Faculty and its network of affiliated research centres and institutes, including innovative research platforms, support programs for clinician-researchers, summer schools and workshops in bioinformatics, multi-omics, artificial intelligence and immunology, as well as innovative technologies. The Pasteur Network Annual Meeting (PNAM 2026), to be held in early November in Laval, Canada, and hosted by the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), will provide a first opportunity to put this partnership into practice. It will bring together PN members and allow the Faculty to build new connections and give rise to joint projects.

About the Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal

The Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal fulfills a threefold mission of teaching, research and social responsibility in order to contribute to improving care. Its training offering comprises more than 200 programs of study across 15 departments and 3 schools, and covers the basic sciences, clinical sciences and health sciences. It draws on the expertise and infrastructure of a vast network of health institutions and affiliated research centres and institutes. The Faculty trains one third of Québec’s physicians and half of its health professionals.

About the Pasteur Network

The Pasteur Network is an alliance of more than 30 organizations that plays a crucial role in tackling global health challenges through science, innovation and public health. Its strength lies in the diversity and broad geographic reach of its members, spread across 25 countries on five continents and united by shared values and missions in service of populations. The PN thus fosters the sharing of scientific knowledge and expertise within a community that is both locally rooted and globally connected.
 
Media contact – Pasteur Network
Hichem Ben Hassine
Contact us here
+33 6 51 93 26 96

Media contact – Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal
Isabelle Lavigne
isabelle.lavigne@umontreal.ca
+1 514 585-7919