Nathalie Grandvaux

Biography

After obtaining an engineering degree and a master degree in Biochemistry from the Institut Nationale Des Sciences Appliquées (INSA) in Lyon, Nathalie Grandvaux finished her doctoral studies in 1999 at the University of Grenoble, where she worked on the role of an enzymatic complex involved in the elimination of bacteria that attack the body. This work gives her the opportunity to approach, from a fundamental point of view, the molecular and structural biology of the mechanisms of the innate immune response. During her postdoctoral studies, (2000-2004), Dr. Grandvaux continued her research on the body’s innate response, this time in the context of virus infections. These studies, still fundamental in nature, nevertheless have clinical applications since they contributed to the advancement of knowledge, and ultimately to the identification of new therapeutic targets for viral infections. Recruited by the Université de Montréal, at the Department of Biochemistry and at CRCHUM, Dr. Grandvaux continues to study the host’s defense mechanisms against viral infections, including respiratory viruses. The innate immune response, which constitutes the first line of defense of the organism, also orchestrates the adaptive response which is put in place in a second time. It is therefore essential to unravel the secrets of this primary response to better understand what are the strategies developed by viruses to circumvent the antiviral response and be able to act as early as possible. An original aspect of Dr. Grandvaux’s research is the study of oxidative metabolism in this response. Dr. Grandvaux’s research has, over the last ten years, shown that, at the level of respiratory mucosa, oxygen derivatives (often considered harmful to the body) are necessary to establish an appropriate defense. The ongoing work of Dr. Grandvaux’s group is to determine how these mechanisms can be used in therapeutic strategies.

Team

• Espérance Mukawera, research assistant
• Audray Fortin, research assistant
• Elise Caron, research assistant
• Quentin Osseman, post-doctoral researcher
• Dacquin Kasumba, post-doctoral researcher
• Natalia Zamorano, PhD student
• Alex Harrison, MSc student
• Layla Dehbidi, undergraduate (honor) student

Theme

Virus / host interaction: Study of the mechanisms of autonomous cellular antiviral response.

Research topics

• Role of oxidative metabolism in the regulation of the antiviral response to respiratory viruses
• Study of the mechanisms used by Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) to escape the antiviral response
• Role of autophagy in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) replication
• Synergism between Interferon β and TNF: mechanisms and impact on antiviral and immunoregulatory responses

Publications

• N. Zamorano Cuervo, Quentin Osseman and N. Grandvaux (2018) Analysis of whole cell extracts distinguishes distinct polymerization states of MAVS during virus infection. Viruses 10(2): 56

• S. Rengachari, S. Groiss, J. Devos, E. Caron, N. Grandvaux and D. Panne (2018) The structure of IRF9 transactivation domain reveals molecular insights into ISGF3 assembly. PNAS. pii: 201718426

• C. Robitaille, E. Caron, N. Zucchini, E. Mukawera, D. Adam, M. Mariani, A. Gélinas, A. Fortin, e. Brochiero and N. Grandvaux (2017) DUSP1 regulates apoptosis and cell migration, but not the JIP1-protected cytokine response, during Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Sendai Virus infection. Sci. Rep.7(1):17388.

• Fink, L. Martin, E. Mukawera, S. Chartier, X. De Deken, E. Brochiero, F. Miot and N. Grandvaux (2013). IFNβ/TNFα synergism induces a non-canonical STAT2/IRF9-dependent pathway triggering a novel DUOX2 NADPH Oxidase-mediated airway antiviral response. Cell Res. 23(5):673-690.

• A. Soucy-Faulkner, E. Mukawera, K. Fink, A. Martel, L. Jouan, Y. Nzengue, D. Lamarre, C. Vande Velde and N. Grandvaux (2010). Requirement of NOX2 and Reactive Oxygen Species for efficient RIG-I-mediated antiviral response through regulation of MAVS expression. PLoS Pathog. Jun 3;6(6):e1000930.