Yvon le Maho

Talk Title: Field work on animals under extreme conditions as a source of biomedical innovation

Yvon LE MAHO is Emeritus Director of Research at the National Center of Scientific Research (CNRS) in Strasbourg University in France. To understand without any bias the physiological and behavioral mechanisms that enable wild animals, and particularly Antarctic penguins, to cope with extreme conditions, he has pioneered the use of new technology such as Radiofrequency Identification and Robotics. In return, these mechanisms are a source of biomedical innovation, such as leading to the discovery of an antimicrobial molecule. He has authored/coauthored about 330 papers in international journals, including 12 in the Nature magazines portfolio.

An elected member of the French Academy of Sciences, he has chaired for 11 years the Scientific Council of Natural Heritage and Biodiversity, the authority advising French Ministers of Ecology. A member of the Advisory board of the journal “Science in One Health”, he has received the Friendship Award of the Chinese government in 2023.