SEMINARS

Title : “The molecular road map of gene expression”
Contact : odil.porrua@igmm.cnrs.fr 

Dr Romain Darrigrand (en visio) - Format court (30 min à 1h) : une présentation suivie d'échanges, pour découvrir un parcours professionnel atypique et recueillir conseils et perspectives utiles, que vous envisagiez une carrière académique ou non.

Après avoir obtenu un diplôme d'ingénieur en chimie médicinale et pharmaceutique à l'ENSCM (Montpellier) et un double diplôme en chimie médicinale translationnelle à l'université de Montpellier en 2016, Romain a réalisé une thèse en oncologie et cancer biology à l'Institut Gustave Roussy (Villejuif). Après l'obtention de son diplôme en 2020, il a intégré Evotec en tant qu'associé en recherche sur l'identification et la validation d'une cible. Désormais, il travaille toujours au sein de la même société en tant que Research Scientist.

Title : "A Molecular Code for Extracellular RNA Trafficking"
Contact : robert.feil@igmm.cnrs.fr
 
Abstract: 
Cells exchange information not only through hormones, neurotransmitters, and small molecules, but also via RNAs that cross cellular boundaries. Cell-to-cell RNA communication has been implicated in the modulation of brain development and function, yet the mechanisms that govern the selective transfer of specific RNAs are unknown. Using genome-wide CRISPR screening, proteomics, and high-sensitivity transcriptomics in a neuronal cell line, we identify domesticated retroviral proteins and RNA-modifying enzymes that regulate neuronal RNA loading into and transportation via extracellular vesicles. We show that the pseudouridine synthase PUS1 is a key determinant of RNA trafficking, and that its catalytic product in RNA, pseudouridine, is both necessary and sufficient for extracellular RNA export. We further show that myosin light chain 6 (MYL6) is a pseudouridine-binding protein required for secretion of synthetic and endogenous RNAs.These findings reveal a biochemical code linking chemical RNA modification to extracellular transport, and establish a framework to study the function of extracellular RNAs in the nervous system.

Jeremie Candotti (IGMM)

IGMM & BIOLuM External Seminar
Genome Dynamics & RNA Biology Axis

Senescent cells cluster CTCF on nuclear speckles to instruct their splicing program

https://papantonislab.eu/

CRBM External Seminar

From sequence to function: Insights from Hox Proteins

Contact: albert.tsai@crbm.cnrs.fr

IGMM External Seminar

Title : "Networks of alternative splicing regulation in cancer"
Contact : julie.carnesecchi@igmm.cnrs.fr

"ZEB1, a factor of the epithelial–mesenchymal transition: a novel player in the regulation of erythropoiesis"

Nicolas Ferrary (intern student in Fabrice Caudron's Lab)

CRBM External Seminar
Contact: patrick.lemaire@crbm.cnrs.fr

"A quantitative model of a phenotypically variable structural defect"

The Drosophila larval trachea is a tractable model for quantitatively studying developmental defects and cell fate determination. In the trachea, progenitor cells robustly organize themselves into distinct cell fates, driven by an external morphogen concentrations. Perturbing the external (FGF) signal, we record stochastic phenotypes in which a variable number of "terminal" cells occur. Using live imaging, we observe how fate determination occurs dynamically and quantify morphological trajectories. To quantitatively model stochastic phenotypic outcomes, we turn to a modified "threshold-liability" model from genetics, and use this to predict outcomes in gain-of-function mutants.

Étude des réseaux de régulation basés sur les TF contrôlant la différenciation érythroïde terminale

Contact: dimitris.xirodimas@crbm.cnrs.fr

Contact: dimitris.xirodimas@crbm.cnrs.fr

Contact: dimitris.xirodimas@crbm.cnrs.fr

Contact: dimitris.xirodimas@crbm.cnrs.fr

Guillaume Bossis (IGMM) et Maxime Fillaudeau (IBMM)

Targeting SUMOylation with peptides: from protein-protein interaction inhibitors to PROTACs and covalent inhibitors

Title :  "Post-transcriptionalcontrol of fungal cell wall synthesis by Ssd1 and co-operating RNA-bindingproteins"

Fungal cell walls are the surface where thefungus meets the world. Yet, there are major gaps in understanding offungal cell wall synthesis and its regulation, notably at thepost-transcriptional level, where the time and place of protein synthesis arecontrolled. Advances in mRNA regulation have identified several RNA-bindingproteins that regulate cell wall synthesis, however their importance in fungalcell biology remains underappreciated¹. Our recent work focuses on the RNA-binding protein Ssd1/sts5/gul-1,which is required for fungal growth and virulence, and genetically interactswith cell cycle regulators. We characterised the evolution of Ssd1'sfungal-specific RNA-binding function². We identified the RNA motif bound by Ssd1 and showed that it isenriched in the 5'UTRs of cell wall mRNAs across ascomycota³. With Atlanta Cook, we solved the structure of Ssd1³ and are investigating its mechanisms of RNA binding.

We marshal evidence across the dikaryota tobuild a model for Ssd1-mediated spatiotemporal regulation of cell wallsynthesis. Ssd1's role as a translation repressor is demonstrated by ourfinding that Ssd1-binding motifs in reporter mRNAs repress translation in yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae. Ssd1's role in mRNA localisation isdemonstrated by our evidence that Ssd1-containing mRNA-protein complexesshuttle along hyphae of Aspergillus nidulans. We hypothesise that Ssd1-mediatedtranslational repression, in co-operation with other RNA-binding proteins,allows "just-in-time" local translation of cell wall components nearsites of cell wall synthesis in growing fungi. Disruption of this regulatorycircuit has profound, pleiotropic impacts on cell wall synthesis, celldivision, and stress resistance.

1.     Hall,R. A. & Wallace, E. W. J. Post-transcriptional control of fungal cell wallsynthesis. Cell Surf. 8, 100074 (2022).

2.     Ballou, E. R., Cook, A. G. & Wallace,E. W. J. Repeated Evolution of Inactive Pseudonucleases in a Fungal Branch ofthe Dis3/RNase II Family of Nucleases. Mol.Biol. Evol. 38, 1837–1846(2021).

3.         Bayne, R. A. et al.Yeast Ssd1 is a non-enzymatic member of the RNase II family with an alternativeRNA recognition site. Nucleic Acids Res.(2021) doi:10.1093/nar/gkab615.
Contact :  fabrice.caudron@igmm.cnrs.fr

- Soha Allioui, a second year PhD student in Damien Grégoire lab in IGMM. She will talk to us about « To observe is to disturb: the cost of watching tumors grow »

- Lisa Vecchio, a second year PhD student in the lab of Domenico Libri et Odil Porrua. She will talk to us about « Crac : a method for high resolution mapping of RNA-binding protein targets ».

"The role of the glutamylase TTLL6 in colon homeostasis and pathology"

Dr. Tobias Goris will share his experience transitioning from academic research to edition.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tobias-goris-819a56aa/

"Cell Membrane and Cytoskeleton axis" half-day meeting:

- L. Casanellas-Vilageliu (L2C, Montpellier) : "Design and microfluidic rheology of biomimetic tissues"

- M. Chavent (CBI, Toulouse) : "From virulence factors to building blocs of supramolecular assemblies: roles of mycobacterial lipids"

- S. Balme (IEMM, Montpellier) : "Nanopore and Confocal Fluorescence Spectroscopy to Reveal Biological Molecule Assembly Mechanisms"

Contacts: cyril.favard@irim.cnrs.fr, Laura.Picas@irim.cnrs.fr, stephane.bodin@crbm.cnrs.fr

Nathan Lecouvreur, a fourth-year PhD student of Thierry Forne's lab, giving a talk called : "What is distance in the context of the genome ? Or how to reconcile linear and 3D distances".

10.00-10.35 Three-Dimensional Epigenome Roadmap of Human B-cell Differentiation Uncovers Mechanisms of Humoral Immunity and Oncogenesis

Biola Javierre, Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute, Barcelona

10.40-11.15 Gene Regulation through Mitosis

Pablo Navarro, Institut Pasteur, Paris

11.20-11.55 Escape from X Inactivation is Directly Modulated by Xist Noncoding RNA

Agnese Loda, Institut Imagine, Paris

Le module Bora / Aurora A / Plx1 à l'épreuve de la reprise méiotique ovocytaire

"Epigenetic Regulation of Gene Expression and Dosage Compensation"

Inscription par email auprès de: jean-marie.peloponese@irim.cnrs.fr ou de magali.abrantes@irim.cnrs.fr

CRBM External Seminar

"Biomolecular Condensates at the Nuclear Envelope:
From Mechanism to Therapeutic Modulation"

Contact: maria.moriel@crbm.cnrs.fr

About the speaker:
Dr. Aurore de Poret completed her PhD in 2020 at IRIM in Montpellier. She transitioned into industry, joining Bayer as Specialist in laboratory processes and technologies. Since 2023, she is Lab Platform Manager, still for Bayer.

You can find her LinkedIn profile here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aurore-de-poret-b6897b98/

Have a nice day,

Claire, Elycia, Solena

Title : Passive Yet Essential, Polycomb Repression in Development and Disease
Contact : carla.heredia@igmm.cnrs.fr

CRBM External Seminar
“Machine Learning and Structure-Based Approaches for the Discovery of Biomarkers and Bioactive Compounds”
Contact: andrey.kajava@crbm.cnrs.fr

Title : “Epigenetic and cis-regulatory determinants of tumorigenesis"
Contact : nadine.laguette@igmm.cnrs.fr

Title: "Signal peptides as timing codes: regulating protein fate at the ER gate"
Contact : daniel.fisher@igmm.cnrs.fr 

The entry of secretory and membrane proteins into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is usually viewed as a rapid co-translational process driven by N-terminal signal peptides (SPs). We have uncovered that a subset of SPs can instead impose a delay at the ER gate, transiently exposing nascent proteins to the cytosol before their entry into the secretory pathway. This “delayed translocation” creates a regulatory window in which domains normally destined to become extracellular or luminal can acquire cytosolic modifications.
PD-L1 exemplifies this mechanism: its suboptimal SP delays ER entry and allows cytosolic regulation of its extracellular domain, shaping PD-L1 maturation, trafficking and function. Beyond revealing SPs as timing codes, this mechanism exposes SP-dependent vulnerabilities that can be exploited pharmacologically. Using two assays we developed, the cytoRUSH and the RELITE, we show that selective interference with Sec61-dependent translocation can be monitored and harnessed to identify small molecules that block PD-L1 ER entry and redirect it toward cytosolic degradation.

References :
Cannata Serio, M. et al. A delayed translocation into the endoplasmic reticulum controls the post-translational modifications of PD-L1. Nat Commun. 2026 Apr 11;  17(1): 5059.

Vitale, F. et al. A light-resuming strategy as a screening method for selecting Sec61 inhibitors down-modulating PD-L1 expression. Nat Commun. 2025 Aug 6;  16(1): 7243.

Title: The Genotype–Phenotype Relationship as Mediator of Therapy Resistance in Acute Myeloid Leukemia 

Abstract:
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is characterized by extensive genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity. Leukemic stem cells (LSCs) are a self-renewing subpopulation of AML cells that sustains disease initiation, progression, and relapse. By translating the underlying pathogenic genotype into a malignant cellular phenotype and generating the progeny that constitute the bulk of the leukemia, LSCs lie at the interface between genotype and phenotype. Over the past decade, both genetic alterations and cellular phenotypes have emerged as important determinants of therapeutic response in AML. Deciphering how these features interact within LSCs may therefore provide new insights into treatment response, disease persistence, and the development of therapy resistance.

Contact : guillaume.bossis@igmm.cnrs.fr

Evolution and diversity in mitosis
Contact: Dominique.helmlinger@crbm.cnrs.fr

"Dynamics and Scaling of Competitive Actin Architectures"
CRBM External Seminar
Contact: benjamin.lacroix@crbm.cnrs.fr

Détails à venir

CRBM & Université de Montpellier

Contact: stephane.bodin@crbm.cnrs.fr, laura.boulan@crbm.cnrs.fr, jean-philippe.chambon@umontpellier.fr, francois.fagotto@crbm.cnrs.fr

Contact: dominique.helmlinger@crbm.cnrs.fr

Contact: dominique.helmlinger@crbm.cnrs.fr

CRBM External Seminar

Contact: albert.tsai@crbm.cnrs.fr