Génotypage d'agents infectieux et mécanismes de virulence. [Genotyping of infectious agents and virulence mechanisms.]
La recherche porte sur les mécanismes d'adhésion, d'invasion et de virulence chez certains pathogènes bactériens. Les cibles visées comportent la bactérie B. burgdorferi, responsable de la maladie de Lyme, H pylori, responsable de l'ulcère gastrique, et B. pertussus, agent causal de la coqueluche. Un intérêt tout particulier porte sur les interactions hôte/bactérie et l'induction de facteurs de virulence qui en résulte. [The research aims at understanding mechanisms controlling adhesion, invasion and virulence of pathogenic viruses and bacteria. This work on the short term has already led to the development and marketing of several non isotopic DNA-based detection kits relying on an original chemistry for nucleic acid labeling. Targets include Helicobacter pylori (gastric ulcer), Borrelia burgdorferi (lyme disease), human papilloma viruses (cancer of the cervix) and cytomegalovirus (transplantation). On the long term, experimental approaches, namely based on differential display of genes expressed in the infected hosts and on in vivo gene expression technology, are expected to lead to the identification of new virulence factors potentially interesting as vaccine candidates. Work is focusing on Borrelia burgdorferi, H. pylori and Bordetella pertussis.]