CV Science

Cécile GAUTHIER-ROUVIERE PhD in Cell Biology

Course and current status

EDUCATION

1991          PhD in Cell Biology, University of Montpellier, France

2000          Accreditation to supervise research (HDR), University of Montpellier, France

ACADEMIC POSITIONS

2013          INSERM Directrice de Recherche

1998          Group Leader, CRBM, Montpellier

1993          INSERM Chargée de Recherche

2011          Visiting scientist at the Scripps Research Institute, San Diego, USA

1991-93     Post-doctoral fellow, Inst. Molecular Genetic, CNRS, Montpellier, France

Scientific summary

Cécile Gauthier-Rouvière has an internationally recognized expertise in Cell Biology with a focus on cadherin-mediated cell adhesion, flotillin signaling and trafficking pathways. In the last years, her team has been working on the role of flotillins in cancer cell invasion. Flotillins 1 and 2 are proteins broadly upregulated in all tumor types, which is associated with a bad prognosis, and having a conserved role during metastasis development. We  identified that upregulated flotillins derail the membrane traffic and elicite the UFIT (Upregulated Flotillins Induced Trafficking) pathway that promotes tumor cell invasion. The sphingolipids are key players of the UFIT pathway. Our discoveries could lead to propose inhibitors of the lipid metabolism as a therapeutic strategy for patients with flotillin-positive cancer.

To answer these questions we use different models: cell lines (in 2D and 3D culture systems), to dissect the involved signalling pathways, and zebrafish, as an in vivo model system. We use cellular and molecular biology techniques. Particularly, we use fluorescent microscopy and video microscopy on live and fixed cells or zebrafish as well as biophysical approaches to study membrane dynamics and the forces generated at adhesion sites thanks to the imaging facility MRI and our collaborations.

Publications

Author of 56 peer-reviewed publications (62 publications in total). Total number of citations: 4421. Average number of citations per item: 55. h-index: 39. ORCID id: 0000-0002-8364-3882.

Selected publications

Genest M, Comunale F, Planchon D, Govindin P, Vacher S, Bièche I, Robert B, Malhotra H, Schoenit A, Tashireva LA, Gauthier-Rouvière C*, Bodin S*. * equal contribution.Up-regulated flotillins and shpingosine kinase 2 derail vesicular traffic to stabilize AXL and promote epithelio-to-mesenchymal transition. doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.05.12.090571. Journal of Cell Science (in press)

Gauthier-Rouvière C, Bodin S, Comunale F and Planchon D. (2020) Flotillin membrane domains in cancer. Cancer and Metastasis, 39, 361-374 (invited review)

Le Borgne-Rochet M, Angevin L, Bazellieres E, Ordas L, Comunale F, Denisov E, Tashireva L, Perelmuter V, Bieche I, Vacher S, Plutoni C, Seveno M, Bodin S, and Gauthier-Rouvière C (2019) P-cadherin-induced decorin secretion is required for collagen fiber alignment and directional collective cell migration. Journal of Cell Science, 132

*Research highlight, Decorin connects ECM remodelling to collective cell migration J Cell Sci 2019 132: e2104

Planchon D, Morris E, Genest M, Comunale F, Vacher S, Bièche I, Denisov E, Tashireva L, Perelmuter V, Linder S, Chavrier P, Bodin S, Gauthier-Rouvière C (2018) MT1-MMP targeting to endolysosomes is mediated by flotillin upregulation. Journal of Cell Science 131: 17. *Research highlight, Journal of Cell Science e1703.

Morris E, Bodin S, Delaval B, Comunale F, Georget V, Costa ML, Lutfalla G, Gauthier-Rouvière C (2017) Flotillins control zebrafish epiboly through their role in cadherin-mediated cell-cell adhesion. Biology of the Cell, 109:210-221

Plutoni C, Bazellieres E, Le Borgne-Rochet M, Comunale F, Brugues A, Séveno M, Planchon D, Morin N, Bodin S, Trepat X and Gauthier-Rouvière C (2016) P-cadherin promotes collective cell migration via a Cdc42-mediated increase in mechanical forces. Journal of Cell Biology, 212: 199-2