Université Paris Cité Joins Landmark UK-France Alliance in Health Research

Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on 27 May 2026, at the British Embassy in Paris. From left to right: Martin Walsh (Diamond Light Source), Richard Cornall (University of Oxford), Matthieu Resche-Rigon (Université Paris Cité), Odette Tomescu-Hatto (Institut Pasteur), and Jean Susini (Synchrotron SOLEIL).

A Landmark Multi-Partner Agreement at the Crossroads of Expertise, Infrastructure and Data

The MoU officially came into effect during the formal setting of the Franco-British Joint Committee (COMIX), committing the institutions for a five-year period (2026–2031). Held at the British Embassy in Paris, the event marks a new stage in cross-Channel scientific relations. It follows on from the joint declaration on cooperation in science, innovation and technology signed by France’s Ministry of Higher Education and Research and Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, together with the United Kingdom’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

This major agreement, entitled UK-France Strategic Interdisciplinary Alliance in Health and AI (Health Alliance), brings together Université Paris Cité and its Faculty of Health, as the French leader, and the University of Oxford, as the UK leader, alongside the Institut Pasteur and two major research infrastructures: France’s SOLEIL synchrotron and the UK’s Diamond Light Source. By uniting these institutional, scientific, and technological strengths, the signatories share a common objective: deciphering the most complex health threats to accelerate the preclinical development of innovative therapies. This ambition will be pursued through three major scientific programmes dedicated respectively to women’s health, pandemic preparedness, and combating pathogenic threats.

“This is a historic partnership between France and the United Kingdom in the post-Brexit era: it marks the beginning of a truly interdisciplinary alliance, bringing together scientists, clinicians, public health experts, social science specialists, innovators and policymakers to address some of the greatest health challenges of our time. This partnership is built on the conviction that major breakthroughs occur when countries and disciplines join forces—connecting biomedical research with data science, social perspectives, clinical practice and global health policy. Together, we are committed to advancing science, building a fairer and healthier future for women, and strengthening our resilience to emerging health threats,” said Matthieu Resche-Rigon, Dean of the Faculty of Health at Université Paris Cité.

Treating and Preventing Major Health Threats

This high-level partnership brings together leading biologists, physicists, engineers and developers from UPCité, Oxford, SOLEIL, Diamond and the Institut Pasteur to revolutionize biological imaging. By combining their expertise and access to the national SOLEIL and Diamond infrastructures, the teams will develop new cutting-edge tools, ranging from cryotomography to super-resolution microscopy, powered by artificial intelligence. The goal is to study the life cycle of pathogens at every scale, from the single molecule to cellular tissue, thereby positioning France and the United Kingdom at the forefront of global medical research.

Women’s Health: Scientific and Human Synergy

At the heart of this MoU is another major and long-underestimated medical issue: women’s health. Scientists from Université Paris Cité, the University of Oxford and the Institut Pasteur are joining forces to launch a strategic programme focused on maternal morbidity and endometriosis. This project directly echoes both the 2022 French National Endometriosis Strategy and the renewed 2026 Women’s Health Strategy in England.

This programme stands out for its strong human and interdisciplinary synergy. It connects teams from Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Women’s and Reproductive Health and UPCité’s Interdisciplinary Institute for Women’s Health (iWISH). Moving beyond biomedical research (such as big data and molecular profiling), the alliance fully integrates the humanities and social sciences. Researchers will examine care-seeking behaviours and the mechanisms driving health inequalities, ensuring fairer and more inclusive medical innovations for patients in France and the UK.

Developing a Global Infectious Disease Data Platform

France and the United Kingdom are joining forces to create an international shared data resource, drawing in particular on the Infectious Diseases Data Observatory (IDDO), led by the University of Oxford. The project aims to design robust systems for data governance, storage and analysis in low- and middle-income countries in Africa and Southeast Asia. By integrating multidimensional data, including clinical, imaging and genetic data, and by developing artificial intelligence tools, this collaboration will help accelerate pathogen detection, design new treatments, and combat priority threats more effectively, including emerging viruses, malaria and antimicrobial resistance.