Testimonials

Obtaining support from the MarMaRa Institute as part of the "End of thesis" call for projects enabled me to approach the final months of my PhD with greater serenity. This grant allowed me to devote myself fully to writing my manuscript, finalizing my research work and preparing my defense. It provided crucial support at a key transitional moment in my academic trajectory, when the dissemination and promotion of my results is crucial to advancement of my career.

The 2024 edition of Treize Minutes Jeunes Chercheur.euses, organized by and for Aix-Marseille Université PhD students, brought together 21 young researchers from 13 different laboratories and disciplines. We opted for an original format, designed as a highlight of scientific culture for the general public. The event took place in two parts: a forum entitled Itinéraire vers la recherche, focusing on the question "Scientific research: for whom? for what?", open in particular to high-school students, followed by an evening of 13-minute mini-conferences, where 6 young PhD students presented their work in a popularized format, both in person and online.

Podcasts and videos of the event are available online. Thanks to the financial support of the Institut MarMaRa, this ambitious event was a great success, with almost 400 participants. Thank you to the Institut for contributing to the success and visibility of the Treize Minutes Jeunes Chercheur.euses among the scientific community!

The "Evolutionary Genetics, Red Globules, Biotherapy" (GENGLOBE) team joins our institute

Led by Wassim El Nemer, the GENGLOBE team explores the evolutionary and functional aspects of human genetic diversity. It focuses on the study of normal and pathological red blood cells and blood groups, and their role in biotherapy approaches.

Thanks to a multidisciplinary approach and unique access to biological collections and rare blood samples, resulting from their collaboration with the Établissement Français du Sang and clinical teams, the team structures its research around three main axes:

• Human demographic and adaptive history: understanding human evolution through genetic markers.
• Red cell biology and genetic diseases: studying red cell-related mechanisms in normal and pathological contexts.
• Immunogenic polymorphism and implications for biotherapy: analyze blood group variations and their impact on therapeutic strategies.

This work, at the interface between evolutionary genetics and medicine, enriches our institute through its fundamental scope and innovative clinical implications.

Stéphane Coulon's team joins our Institute with a research focus on telomeres and chromatin

We are delighted to welcome Stéphane Coulon's team, specialists in telomere maintenance mechanisms, structures essential to genome stability and function. This work is at the crossroads of cancer, aging and rare genetic diseases.

The team's research aims to understand how telomeres, located at the ends of chromosomes, are maintained and protected. Erosion or dysfunction of these structures is associated with processes such as cellular aging, age-related diseases, stem cell biology, as well as the development of certain cancers.

Using yeast models, the team is exploring the mechanisms that regulate telomere length, telomere replication and cellular responses to telomere erosion. Particular attention is paid to the relocation of eroded telomeres to the nuclear pore during replicative senescence, and to the consequences of this phenomenon.

In addition, the team is involved in a consortium identifying the genes responsible for telomere biology disorders, rare genetic diseases caused by premature telomere shortening. This research aims to better understand their role in telomere maintenance.

Finally, the team is contributing to several anticancer programs, notably on the mechanisms of Alternative Lengtheningof Telomeres (ALT) in mesenchymal tumors without ATRX mutations. This work paves the way for new therapeutic approaches against cancer.

These lines of research enrich our institute, strengthening our expertise in key areas of fundamental biology and human health.

New pathophysiological mechanisms involved in thrombosis: from the clinic to the laboratory

Pierre Morange's team

Pierre Morange's team explores new pathophysiological avenues linked to hemostasis and venous thrombosis (VT), combining clinical and fundamental research. Thanks to "omics" approaches applied to large cohorts of patients, enriched by biobanks, it has identified new genes associated with VT. These genes, which are not part of the classical coagulation or fibrinolysis cascades, open the way to novel discoveries about the underlying mechanisms.

In the laboratory, the team studies little-explored processes, such as transmembrane proteolysis, in the regulation of hemostasis and thrombosis. Among its flagship projects are the study of the CTL2 protein and its interaction with von Willebrand factor (VWF) in models of inflammation and thrombosis, and the analysis of the protective role of the inflammatory molecule LIGHT in atherosclerosis and its thrombotic complications.

The team is also interested in the proteases that cleave proteins on the cell surface, exploring their regulation and biological impact. For example, it is studying thrombomodulin (TM), an antithrombotic protein, and its cleavage by a specific protease, RHBDL2, in vascular endothelial cells.

This ambitious research is aimed at gaining a better understanding of the mechanisms of thrombotic diseases, and developing new diagnostic tools and innovative therapies for patients.

IBDM- Computational Biology

IBDM's Computational Biology team works on data integration -omics, focusing mainly on mitochondria. They have developed the mitoXplorer tool(https://mitoxplorer3.ibdm.univ-amu.fr) for mitochondria-centric integration. They are also working on a sister platform, ataxiaXplorer, designed for in-depth exploration of single-cell RNA-seq data from cerebellar ataxias.

The team uses computational techniques, including visual data mining, networks and constraint-based modeling, to study mitochondrial metabolism. They are designing user-friendly web-based tools for non-computer experts to facilitate efficient data mining.

The NanoBio 2023 conference held in Heraklion from September 11 to 15 saw the participation of numerous professionals, researchers and students committed to exploring nanotechnologies applied to current biomedical and environmental challenges. My contribution to this Internationally renowned event was financially supported by a grant from MarMaRa, which enabled me not only to share the results of my studies through an oral communication, but also to draw inspiration from the work of colleagues. The opportunity to take part in conferences and discuss my work with other professionals is fundamental to the advancement of my scientific career.

The aim of the second NanoBio 2023 conference was to provide a forum for interdisciplinary exchange in the field of nanotechnology and biology. The conference, held in Heraklion, brought together international scientists over five days, and my participation in it was made possible thanks to a MarMaRa mission grant. As a result, I was able to present my thesis work on laser-assisted bioprinting in a workshop dedicated to tissue engineering. This experience gave me valuable feedback on my work, and I was able to talk to a number of researchers interested in applying this process to their own research projects.

The aim of our project is to develop and study new cellular models of LAMA2-RD derived from patient stem cells (hiPSC). Thanks to this funding, the team has already derived hiPSCs from four patients carrying different mutations in the LAMA2 gene, and phenotypic analyses of the differentiated muscle cells are currently underway. These will enable us to identify the pathological mechanisms of LAMA2-RD in humans and new therapeutic targets.
For our small LAMA2 France association, our priority is to be able to provide practical support to researchers working directly on this muscular dystrophy. Project co-funding is an effective way for us to get involved, while enabling us to follow research projects in a concrete way, and thus improve the information we provide to patients and their families. It's a win-win partnership!