Sponsors and institutional supports

Fondation Jérôme Lejeune presentation
Created in 1995, the Fondation Jérôme Lejeune initiates, develops and finances fundamental,
translational and clinical research programs on Trisomy 21 and other intellectual disabilities of
genetic origin. Its ultimate goal is to identify potential targets for intervention and advance
the development of drugs and therapies that will offer patients the opportunity to lead
healthier, longer and fulfilling lives. It also sponsors research on pathologies associated with
Trisomy 21 that are also present in the general population (e.g. cardiopathies, leukaemia, sleep
apnoea, Alzheimer’s disease). This research on cross-pathologies enables to pool efforts,
cross-reference results and develop molecules for the benefit of several therapeutic targets.
Each year, the independent scientific committee, together with external reviewers, evaluate
over 120 grants and postdoctoral fellowship applications to select the most outstanding ones
for funding.
The Foundation also created the Institut Jérôme Lejeune dedicated to the care of persons (new-
borns to ageing patients) with intellectual disability of genetic origin (more than 13,000 patients
since its creation) and its Biobank BioJeL (biological resources from more than 2,400 patients
available for the scientific community worldwide).
As a public utility institution and thanks to the generosity of its private donators, the Foundation
dedicates an annual budget of 4 million EUR to research, making it a major funder and incubator
or research on intellectual disabilities of genetic origin in Europe.