PReViX: a project to anticipate the next respiratory virus pandemic
The scientific project PReViX for Pandemic preparedness to Respiratory Virus X, led by Mircea Sofonea, senior lecturer at the University of Montpellier, is officially funded by the PEPR MIE emerging infectious diseases program in order to better respond to future global health crises.
While the world is still struggling to learn all the lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, the scientific community is mobilizing to prevent future major health threats. In France, the PReViX project is part of this effort. Coordinated by a national consortium of nine research units spread across four sites (Montpellier, Paris, Bordeaux, and Rennes), this large-scale project aims to build a scientific and health response framework capable of detecting, modeling, and anticipating the emergence of new respiratory viruses as soon as the first signs appear. It is based on WHO recommendations, which place "Disease X" at the heart of its priorities, emphasizing the urgent need to be better prepared for a future pandemic caused by a pathogen that is still unknown.
A global alert and a major public health issue
In 2020, the emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus plunged the world into one of the most serious health crises in its history. In France, as elsewhere, healthcare systems, governance structures, and scientific mechanisms had to adapt urgently, revealing flaws and a lack of preparedness in the face of such a shock. Despite the efforts made, the succession of SARS-CoV-2 variants and the resurgence of viruses such as Mpox and avian influenza have shown that pandemic risks remain omnipresent. It is in this context that the WHO has updated its list of priority pathogens, which includes Disease X, a symbol of these still invisible but very real threats.
The PReViX project aims to respond concretely to this call by developing research protocols and analytical tools that can be activated immediately as soon as the first suspected cases appear. Through an interdisciplinary approach, it aims to provide public decision-makers and healthcare stakeholders with reliable, real-time analysis tools that enable rapid, science-based decision-making. Epidemic forecasting, genomic surveillance, analysis of immune dynamics: everything is designed to accelerate the response to future respiratory threats, thereby limiting the burden on healthcare systems and the need for the most restrictive countermeasures.
A cutting-edge consortium for an integrated scientific response
The strength of the PReViX project lies in the diversity of its consortium, which brings together complementary expertise in epidemiology, modeling, virology, infectious diseases, public health, genomics, and the humanities. The project's six strategic areas cover the entire spectrum of the scientific response: early assessment of pandemic potential, targeting screening and vaccination policies, improving genomic analysis tools, epidemic forecasting based on antigenic data, designing early non-pharmaceutical interventions, and rapidly adapting the healthcare system according to the characteristics of the pathogen.
This integrated approach will not only produce high-level scientific results, but also strengthen national capacity for anticipation and response in the long term. The project also aims to structure and sustain a French community of excellence in quantitative approaches to infectious diseases, while promoting the emergence of a new generation of researchers trained in these transdisciplinary issues.
Close collaboration between research, public health, and policy-making
Working closely with Santé publique France, the Vaccine Research Institute, the FHU TIE, and several biomedical learned societies, PReViX aims to build a solid bridge between fundamental research and operational decisions. It will help to produce concrete and up-to-date risk assessments that will be useful to health authorities in crisis situations. By focusing on co-construction, data transparency, and responsiveness, the project is fully in line with a forward-looking public health approach.
More than just a scientific project, PReViX is an operational framework for anticipating and responding to future health emergencies. By preparing France to face emerging respiratory threats, it is actively contributing to the development of a more robust monitoring, alert, and response system that serves the health of all.