News
Michel Bouvier Named Officer of the Order of Canada
Published on June 29, 2026
Professor Michel Bouvier, director of IRIC’s Molecular Pharmacobiology Research Unit, has been named an Officer of the Order of Canada by the Governor General.
An Exceptional Vision in Service of the Research Ecosystem
The Order of Canada honors those who have made an extraordinary contribution to the nation. The rank of Officer recognizes outstanding achievements and merit, particularly in the context of service to the country or to humanity.
Professor Bouvier has had an extraordinary career marked by his visionary leadership. As a researcher, he is recognized worldwide for his expertise in the study of G protein-coupled receptors, the largest family of surface proteins involved in cell signaling.
Throughout his career, he quickly assumed leadership roles. First as director of the Department of Biochemistry at the Université de Montréal, then by helping to establish IRIC, where he served as associate chief executive officer from 2009 to 2014 and as chief executive officer from 2014 to 2024.
Under his leadership, two pillars driving research toward the discovery of targeted therapies were established: the Drug Discovery Unit—the largest group of scientists dedicated to drug discovery in academia in the country—and IRICoR, a center of excellence in commercialization specializing in drug discovery. Professor Bouvier served as director of IRICoR from 2011 to 2016.
He was also the founding director of the Groupe de recherche universitaire sur les médicaments (GRUM) and president of the Réseau québécois de recherche sur les médicaments.
In the lab, his team continues to advance our understanding of GPCR signaling. His work has notably led to the creation of the startup Drave Therapeutics, which develops therapeutic solutions based on GPCRs.
