The emergence of antibiotic resistance in numerous pathogenic bacteria requires the development of innovative therapeutic strategies based on the characterization of new molecular determinants of virulence and of cellular factors involved in critical host-pathogen interactions for infection.
From this perspective, the molecular mechanisms responsible for activating and regulating innate immunity, which constitutes the first line of defence against pathogens, are of particular interest. During an infection, bacteria are detected by immune cell pathogen recognition receptors (PRRs) but also epithelial and endothelial cells which act as sentinels of immunity. After recognition of bacterial molecular patterns, PRRs trigger pro-inflammatory signalling pathways that result in the secretion of a wide range of immune effectors such as cytokines, chemokines and antimicrobial peptides.
Our laboratory works at the interface between immunology and cell biology and studies the molecular mechanisms involved in the detection of infectious bacteria and the control of innate immunity. We combine RNAi screens, live cell fluorescence microscopy, electron microscopy, proteomics and transcriptomics to characterize new host-pathogen interactions that could be targeted by anti-infective treatments. The Gram-negative bacterium Shigella flexneri is our main model of infection.