Parents House

Since 22 years, the Foundation has devoted more than 1.6 million euros in parents houses. These reception facilities are essential for hospitalized children, they allow parents to stay close by their children.

With the support of the Foundation, 17 parents houses were renovated or created: The Saint-Jean houses in Necker hospital in Paris, as well as in Bordeaux, Nantes and in Lyon Sud; The Maison du Petit Monde in Lyon hospitals; The Maison du Figuier in Angers; The Maison du Bonheur in Nice; Parents houses in Bicêtre, Margency and Lille; The Maison du Sacré Coeur in Bastia hospital; The parents house in Bullion; La Pelouse in Bordeaux; The parents house attached to Orléans hospital; The parents houses in Reims, Saint-Brieuc and Nancy.

Medical Research

Since more than 20 years, the Foundation has given financial assistance to 3 medical laboratories specialized in children diseases.

Inserm 1151 part of the Necker children hospital, under the direction of Professor Jean-Claude Weill, professor Emeritus of Immunology. The Foundation supports his work focused on the study of molecular basis of immune memory in vaccination, and also in the case of auto-immune diseases which can affect young children. Thanks to his connection with the Necker Hospital, he can practice medicine and look after children hospitalized for genetic diseases.

Inserm 1163 also connected to the Necker Hospital, and being part of the Imagine Institute for children genetic diseases. It is directed by Dr Nadine Cerf-Bensussan, and studying the intestinal barrier and the diseases caused by its dysfunction. The first line of work has contributed to elucidate the pathogenesis of celiac disease, to define diagnostic tools that are now used in clinics, and to propose therapeutic approaches. This work has been awarded with the Inserm research prize in 2014 and the Maki prize from the University of Tampere (Finland) in 2018. A second line of work initiated in 2002 has focused on the interactions with the gut microbiota, and the unexpectedly identification of a unique bacterium that is essential to protect the intestinal immune barrier. The project aims at transforming this bacterium into a vaccine platform against enteric infections, which remain a major cause of mortality in children in developing countries.

Inserm 1141 associated with the Robert Debré Hospital in Paris, directed by Professor Pierre Gressens. This laboratory focuses on foetal and newborn brain development. Preterm birth is the commonest cause of death and disability in children under 5 years of age, in the developed world, and the rate of prematurity is increasing. While the emotional and financial costs of these deficits to individuals, families and society are immeasurable, there is no treatment to prevent or mitigate these deficits. In recent years, this laboratory has significantly contributed to understanding the mechanisms of perinatal brain damage, and to designing potential strategies for neuroprotection.