CV Science

David Perrais Membrane Traffic at Synapses

Course and current status

2019-present Group Leader at IINS. Team “Membrane Traffic at Synapses” (MemTraS)

2015-2019 Research Director (DR2 CNRS) in the team of D Choquet (IINS, CNRS UMR 5297)

2011-2015 Research Scientist (CR1 CNRS) in the team of D Choquet (IINS, CNRS UMR 5297)

2005-2010 Research Scientist (CR2 then CR1 CNRS) in the team of C Mulle

2002-2005 Post-doctoral fellow. Team of Christophe Mulle (INB, University of Bordeaux)

1999-2002 Post-doctoral fellow. Team of Wolf Almers (Vollum Institute, Portland, USA)

1994-1999 PhD. Director: Nicole Ropert (Institut Alfred Fessard, Gif-sur-Yvette, France)

Scientific summary

Vesicular trafficking is one of the most salient features of synaptic physiology. In the tiny (less than 1 µm wide) chemical synapses, presynaptic vesicles concentrate and release neurotransmitter molecules which bind to post-synaptic receptors. The exocytosis and recycling of synaptic vesicles is a very prominent and essential feature of neuronal physiology that is highly controlled in time and space. Moreover, post-synaptic membrane trafficking, although not as prominent quantitatively, is pivotal for the maintenance of signal transduction complexes supporting synaptic transmission and plasticity. Most of our knowledge about synapse physiology comes from studying glutamatergic synapses which represent the majority of synapses in the brain. Nevertheless, other types of synapses, such as neuromodulatory dopaminergic synapses, could have a very different molecular composition and operate in a different way. However, because they represent a small minority of synapses formed from a very small number of neurons, their analysis has been difficult through classical cellular and molecular methods. Our goal in the team is to use the most advanced fluorescence imaging techniques together with refined purification of synaptic elements (synaptosomes) to address the mechanisms regulating synapse function through membrane trafficking events in normal brain physiology or in the course of disease.

To achieve this goal, we use, on top of the standard techniques of the modern neuroscience lab (molecular biology, biochemistry, imaging, electrophysiology), two unique expertise developed by the two PIs: first, with David Perrais, we develop methods to detect individual exocytosis and endocytosis events with pH sensitive fluorophores and perform quantitative imaging. Second, with Etienne Herzog, we purify synaptosomes from adult animals with fluorescence activated synaptosome sorting (FASS), which enables powerful proteomics, transcriptomics and functional approaches. Altogether, we aim at identifying new pathways in specific synapses and test their relevance for synaptic nanostructure and function in the normal and diseased brain.

Selected publications 

• Bakr M, Jullié D, Krapivkina J, Paget-Blanc V, Bouit L, Petersen JD, Retailleau N, Breillat C, Herzog E, Choquet D, Perrais D (2021) The vSNAREs VAMP2 and VAMP4 control recycling and intracellular sorting of post-synaptic receptors in neuronal dendrites. Cell Reports 36(10):109678.
• Sposini S, Rosendale M, Claverie L, Van TNN, Jullié D, Perrais D (2020) Imaging endocytic vesicle formation at high spatial and temporal resolutions with the pulsed-pH protocol. Nature Protocols 15(9):3088-3104.
• Rosendale M, Van TNN, Grillo-Bosch D, Sposini S, Claverie L, Gauthereau I, Claverol S, Choquet D, Sainlos M, Perrais D (2019) Functional recruitment of dynamin requires multimeric interactions for efficient endocytosis. Nature Commun, 10:4462.
• Rosendale M, Jullié D, Choquet D, Perrais D (2017) Spatial and temporal regulation of receptor endocytosis in neuronal dendrites revealed by imaging of single vesicle formation. Cell Reports, 18:1840-1847.
• Taylor MJ, Perrais D & Merrifield CJ (2011). A high precision survey of the molecular dynamics of mammalian clathrin-mediated endocytosis. PloS Biol 9(3):e1000604.

Publications and review record at Publons