CIIL - NEWSLETTER , november 2026 - N° 20

I obtained my PhD in Life and Health Sciences, specializing in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Microbiology, from the University of Strasbourg in 2023, following a Master’s degree in Microbiology. My doctoral research focused on developing a targeted antibiotic-delivery strategy to combat antimicrobial resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. By engineering the bacteriocin pyocin S2, an antibacterial protein that hijacks bacterial nutrient-uptake machinery, to deliver a carbapenem antibiotic to resistant bacteria, I demonstrated the potential of this approach to overcome non-enzymatic carbapenem resistance in P. aeruginosa, including resistance associated with porin loss and efflux upregulation. This work combined microbiology, molecular biology, protein engineering, and bioconjugation, and sparked my interest in developing innovative strategies to overcome bacterial resistance.

In January 2024, I joined the AntiBac team led by Ruben Hartkoorn at the Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille (CIIL), Institut Pasteur de Lille, as a postdoctoral researcher. Building on my doctoral research, I now investigate an alternative approach for antibiotic delivery based on siderophores, small molecules that bacteria use to acquire iron from their environment. This Trojan Horse strategy exploits bacterial iron-uptake systems to transport antimicrobial compounds into bacterial cells. My work focuses on developing and evaluating siderophore–antibiotic conjugates against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative pathogens, particularly P. aeruginosa. Taking into account the prevalence and contribution of resistance mechanisms in clinical isolates, as well as the properties of siderophore vectors, I explore the vectorization of carbapenem (meropenem) and metallo-β-lactamase inhibitor (indole carboxylate-based inhibitor) warheads using the triscatecholate siderophore enterobactin and its synthetic analogue TRENCAM. Our work has shown that this strategy can restore the activity of this potent metallo-β-lactamase inhibitor against P. aeruginosa, where its activity is likely limited by poor permeability, and reverse meropenem and cefiderocol resistance in multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa. I evaluate conjugate activity through microbiological and biochemical assays and assess their efficacy in vivo using the Galleria mellonella infection model.

Prior to my academic research career, I spent five years in the pharmaceutical biotechnology industry, contributing to research and development and quality control of recombinant protein therapeutics. This experience strengthened my interest in R&D, where I discovered how much I enjoy investigating technical challenges, identifying areas for optimization, and implementing effective solutions. My background in quality control also reinforced the importance of precision and reproducibility, which remain essential to my research today.