Didier Ménard

Didier Ménard is a Full Professor at the University of Strasbourg and Director of the Institute of Parasitology and Tropical Diseases (UR7292). Since 2023, he serves as a visiting researcher in the Malaria Parasite Biology and Vaccines Unit at the Pasteur Institute, headed by Chetan Chitnis. Previously, from 2017 to 2021, he led the Malaria Genetics and Resistance Group and later the Malaria Genetics and Resistance Unit at the Pasteur Institute Paris.

Dr. Ménard's research focuses on antimalarial drug resistance in both Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax parasites. His work spans molecular epidemiology, genetics of resistance mechanisms, and development of surveillance tools for drug-resistant malaria. He has conducted extensive field research in Africa (Central African Republic, Madagascar) and Southeast Asia (Cambodia), contributing significantly to our understanding of malaria transmission dynamics and resistance patterns.

His research has revealed critical insights into P. vivax infection mechanisms in Duffy-negative populations and identified key molecular markers of artemisinin and piperaquine resistance in P. falciparum. Most notably, his team demonstrated that mutations in the K13 propeller domain and amplifications of plasmepsin II and III genes are major determinants of artemisinin and piperaquine resistance, respectively.

Analysis of his recent publications (2023-2025) reveals a strong focus on emerging drug resistance patterns, particularly artemisinin-resistant malaria in Africa, molecular mechanisms of parasite invasion, and genomic epidemiology of P. vivax in sub-Saharan Africa. His work increasingly addresses the dual challenges of diagnostic limitations (HRP2-negative malaria) and treatment failures in malaria-endemic regions.

Dr. Ménard has led several significant research projects including IMPRIMA (Implementing Primaquine Single Low Dose in Africa), TipTop (monitoring sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine resistance), development of new biomarkers for malaria detection, and SaMARA (Surveillance and Monitoring of Antimalarial Resistance in Africa). His laboratory utilizes advanced genomic and molecular techniques to characterize drug-resistant parasite populations.