While the immune system is highly complex and responses are known to vary across individuals and populations, medical practices and public health policies remain based on a single model of patient care and drug development. The Milieu Intérieur project was initiated specifically to address this discrepancy.
The primary objective of our work is to establish the boundaries of a "healthy" immune response and define the determinants of immune response variation, integrating the relationship among genetics, epigenetics and the environment. The specific aims of the Milieu Intérieur project are to:
(i) define the naturally-occurring variability of human immune response,
(ii) assess how this variation is genetically, epigenetically or environmentally controlled,
(iii) understand how this genetic/phenotypic variation may account for differences in susceptibility to infection, therapeutic treatment or vaccine response, and
(iv) ascertain the variation and role of the microbiota in regulating immune programs.
The Milieu Intérieur project is poised to have a strong impact on public health, as the data generated will greatly improve our understanding of individual variability in immune response. In doing so, we will provide new strategies for adapting treatments with a view to developing a personalized approach to patient care.