News
Seminar

 Leslie Bancel-Vallée et  Roxane Fabre

ZEISS RMS Microscopy

"Microscopie confocale ZEISS : Applications innovantes dans la recherche sur le cancer"

hôte : A. DJIANE (IRCM)

Valérie de Crécy-Lagard, PhD

Distinguished Professor, AAAS & ASM fellow

Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida 

"From Bacteria to Humans: Using Comparative Genomics to Reveal Hidden Gene Functions"

host: A . David (IRCM)

This talk highlights how comparative genomics, combined with biochemistry, structural biology, and machine learning, can uncover the functions of genes across all domains of life. It explains why functional annotation remains one of biology’s biggest challenges—due to paralogs, missing genes, inconsistent curation, and the limits of sequence?based prediction.

Through case studies, the presentation shows how bacterial model systems help solve long?standing mysteries in human biology. Examples include the discovery of the t6A tRNA?modification pathway, the functional and medical relevance of the PLPBP/YggS protein family, and the identification of the long?missing queuine/queuosine transporter in eukaryotes (SLC35F2). The talk emphasizes that accurate gene?function discovery requires integrative approaches and community?driven curation, as AI alone cannot yet resolve complex functional questions.

Professeur Tadashi Watabe, MD, PhD

Osaka University, Japon

"Advancing Theranostics and Targeted Alpha Therapy with Astatine-211"

host : JP. POUGET (IRCM)

Prof. Tadashi Watabe is an Associate Professor at the University of Osaka, Japan. He is a board-certified nuclear medicine physician with extensive expertise in theranostics and targeted alpha therapy. He serves as the principal investigator (PI) of investigator-initiated clinical trials of astatine (²¹¹At)-based targeted alpha therapy. The Alpha-T1 trial, which investigated [²¹¹At]NaAt in patients with radioiodine-refractory thyroid cancer, has been completed. He is currently leading the ongoing first-in-human Alpha-PS1 trial, which uses [²¹¹At]PSMA-5 targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (NCT06441994). He is also the PI of several clinical studies involving [¹⁸F]FAPI-74, [¹⁸F]FBPA, and [¹¹C]HCA2969. He has authored more than 170 peer-reviewed publications, with a primary research focus on the preclinical development of targeted alpha therapies using ²¹¹At and ²²⁵Ac, as well as theranostics related to FAPI, LAT1, and EphA2. He also serves as the Executive Congress Chair of the Theranostics World Congress 2027

Daniel MUNOZ-ESPIN, PhD

CRUK Cambridge Centre Early Detection Programme, 

Hutchison/MRC Research Centre; Cambridge University

"Aging, senescence and reprogramming in lung cancer: therapeutic interventions"

host: A. Maraver (IRCM)

David PEPIN, PhD

Harvard Medical School - Massachusetts General Hospital (USA)

"Role of Cancer associated Mesothelial cells in Tumor Microenvironment"

hôte : Nathalie Bonnefoy & Maeva Chauvin (IRCM)

Pr. David Pépin, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. He trained as a molecular and developmental biologist, earning his doctorate at the University of Ottawa and completing postdoctoral training in reproductive biology and ovarian cancer research at MGH. His laboratory is focused on women’s health, from fertility to ovarian cancer. His team has pioneered research on the role of developmental hormone signals, such as anti?Müllerian hormone (AMH), in regulating the tumor microenvironment through stromal cells such as cancer?associated mesothelial cells (CAMCs). Pr. Pépin’s work combines advanced preclinical models and biological insights to uncover novel therapeutic targets for ovarian cancer and women’s health, bridging basic science with clinical applications.