Inserm at a Glance
Founded in 1964, InsermInstitut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale. is a public scientific and technological institute which operates under the joint authority of the French Ministries of Health and Research. The institute is dedicated to biomedical research and human health, and is involved in the entire range of activities from the laboratory to the patient’s bedside. It also partners with the most prestigious research institutions in the world that are committed to scientific challenges and progress in these fields.
Organization of the Institute
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer:
Didier Samuel
Vice-CEO for Strategy:
Elli Chatzopoulou
Vice-CEO for Administration:
Damien Rousset
Executive Director:
Carine Delrieu
- 12 regional offices
- 9 theme-based instituts
Scientific production
Publications
13,147 Inserm-affiliated original articles (2024 publications, InCites, ESI data as of January 14, 2026), including 383 among the top 1% most cited worldwide.
- 46.74% of all biology and medicine papers in France
- 5th institution worldwide for biomedical research by number of original articles
- 79% are in open access (2024 publications, French Open Science Barometer, February 2026)
Value creation
Intellectual property
211 invention disclosures and 2,568 active patent families in 2025, including 143 new applications (patents and software).
Inserm is :
- 1st European academic institution for biomedical research patent application
- 1st European patent applicant in the pharmaceutical sector and 3rd in biotechnology
Industrial partnerships
- 64 license agreements (patents, know-how, research tools)
- 241 non-consortium R&D contracts
Our Nobel and Lasker Prize winners
Nobel Prize
- Jean Dausset (1980)
- Françoise Barré-Sinoussi (2008)
Lasker Prize
- Étienne-Émile Baulieu (1989)
- Pierre Chambon (2004)
- Alim-Louis Benabid (2014)
Inserm in France
- 263 research units
- 50 service units
- 37 clinical investigation centers
in Europe
- 261 Horizon Europe projects, among which 142 projects coordinated
- 2nd French recipient of European Research Council grants
and in the world
- 118 partner foreign laboratories (key international partnerships, joint labs, theme-based coordination programs, international research projects, networks or platforms, etc.)
- 188 partner countries
- 9,127 international co-publications
Workforce
- 5,046 civil servants, including:
- 2,201 researchers
- 2,845 engineers and technicians
- 4,172 contract staff and temporary workers
- 6,614 researchers-teachers and hospital teachers in Inserm units
2025 Budget
1,028.5 billion euros, of which:
- €734.4 million from government subsidies
- €294.1 million from internal resources, including €236 million from research contracts
Initial 2026 budget
€1,335.5 million, of which:
- €729 million from government subsidies
- €606.5 million from internal resources
Learn more about Inserm
