- Fighting bacterial infection -
There is a dramatic increase of multi-drug resistant bacterial infection worldwide. New treatments that will not induce antibacterial resistance are needed.
I am a senior researcher working in the field of Immunology, Inflammation & Host-Pathogen Interactions. My work focusses on identifying new ways to improve our immune system against bacterial infections.
My research tackles two main subjects:
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How our immune cells are using metal ions, like Zinc and Copper, to kill bacteria and how can we facilitate this?
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How mitochondria dynamics and specific enzymes HDACs control our immune response.
Fighting bacterial infection
There is a dramatic increase of multi-drug resistant bacterial infection worldwide. We need to find new way to treat these infections that will limit antibacterial resistance.
Why this research is important ?
Antibiotic Resistance
10 Million of death per year due to antibiotic resistance
We will reach this number in 2050 if we do not act now. This number will be far superior to the estimated number of death due to cancer (8M) or diabetes (1.5M)...
(UK Review on antimicrobial resistance, 2014)
Salmonella
40% of Foodborn Illness Outbreak due to Salmonella in France.
Salmonella outbreaks cost the EU 3 billion Euros per year, and is the most commonly pathogen found in poultry and pigs.
(Les zoonoses expliquées par l’EFSA: Salmonella. 2014)
Uropathogenic E. coli
50% of women will develop a urinary track infection in their lifetime
UTI account for >1M hospitalisations and $3.5 billion in medical expenses each year in the USA alone
News
My projects
IMMUNOACETYL - Marie-Curie Individual Fellowship 894690 - Horizon 2020
HDAC6 (Histone Deacetylase 6) is an enzyme that can modify other proteins by removing an Acetyl group. Thus, it participates to the modulation of signalisation pathways and cellular response to danger signals.
Rebecca L. Cooper Foundation #021765
Mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell, but they control several other pathways, including the immune response. They are very responsive to environmental cues and fluctuate between a tubular and fragmented network. We investigated how this dynamic controls the inflammatory and the antibacterial responses.
Discovery Early-Career Research Award (Australian Research Council)
We showed that macrophages can use Zinc and copper to eliminate bacterial infection. But, pathogens such Salmonella and Uropathogenic E. coli have evolved to subvert the zinc toxicity pathway. In broader term, my project investigated how macrophages control and use metal ions as an antimicrobial weapon and how we can enhance our immune system using this knowledge.
Funding
This work would not be possible without these funding bodies
European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No 894690
2021 - 2023
Rebecca L. Cooper Foundation #021765
2018 - 2020
Genome Innovation Hub Collaborative Project
2020 - 2021
Understanding host-pathogen interactions through development new co-transcriptomic single cell RNA sequencing technologies
Vertex Innovation Awards
2020 - 2022
Improving the ability of CF macrophages to handle mycobacterium abscessus (MABS)
Discovery Early-Career Research Award (Australian Research Council)
2013 - 2016
Veterinary Comparative Respiratory Society
2012
Commencement of race training in Standardbred racehorses results in a derangement of cellular immune regulation at the level of the alveolar macrophage
Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale
2007 - 2008
4th year PhD grant
French Ministry of Research
2004 - 2007
3-years PhD Scholarship - Role of TLR2, phagocytosis and intracellular NOD receptors in the detection of S. aureus by macrophages from different micro-environments.