Benoit CHASSAING obtained his PhD in microbiology from the University of Clermont-Ferrand (France) in 2011, identifying factors involved in the virulence of adherent and invasive Escherichia coli strains (pathovar involved in the etiology of Crohn's disease). Following his PhD, he joined Georgia State University to work with Dr. Andrew T. Gewirtz on various subjects related to mucosal immunology. With the support of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, his work deciphered how genetic (TLR5, for example) and environmental factors (dietary emulsifiers, for example) can perturb the intestinal microbiota composition in a detrimental way, leading to intestinal inflammation. He was promoted assistant professor at Georgia State University in 2015 where he pursued his investigations of regulators of the Host-Microbe Interactions. His laboratory, now part of INSERM and located in Paris, is focusing on a better understanding of mechanisms involved in microbiota regulation, with a focus on intestinal inflammation and altered metabolism. The central objective of his research team is to study composition and function of the microbiota at the mucosal surface, in both health and diseases and using both pre-clinical models and clinical approaches. In his presentation, Benoit Chassaing will present recent advances made toward a better understanding of the central role played by mucus-associated bacteria in chronic inflammatory diseases.