Joost SCHANSTRA

PhD, Director of research, Group leader

Career path

Joost Schanstra received his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands in 1996. From 1996 to 1999 he worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the field of Nephrology and was re-cruited as a principal investigator at INSERM, Toulouse, in 1999. Since 2008, Joost Schanstra is a Director of research at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1297.

Main domains of expertise:
Clinical proteomics, Chronic kidney disease, Systems biology, Urinary biomarkers

Bénédicte BUFFIN-MEYER

Bénédicte Buffin-Meyer: PhD, HDR, Associate professor University Paul Sabatier, Principal investigator

Career path

Bénédicte Buffin-Meyer received her PhD in 1996 from the University of Paris-Sud/Orsay. Her thesis aimed to improve the understanding of renal adaptation mechanisms. Then she completed a 3-year post-doctoral fellowship in the field of biochemistry. In 1999, she was recruited as Associate Professor in Physiology at the Paul Sabatier University, and until 2007, she was interested in the pharmacology of epithelial cells, especially in the kidney. Since 2007, she performs her research at the laboratory of renal fibrosis, INSERM U1297.

Main domains of expertise:

Renal cellular biology, Urinary shear stress, Kidney disease, Clinical peptidomics, Metabolomics,

Julie KLEIN

Julie Klein, PhD, Researcher Inserm, Principal investigator

Career path

Julie Klein received her PhD from the University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France, in 2009. From 2009 to 2014 she worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the field of proteomics and bioinformatics in chronic kidney disease and was recruited as a researcher at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1048, Toulouse in 2014.

Main domains of expertise

Bioinformatics tools and databases (KUPKB, Proteasix, PRYNT), Clinical proteomics, Cardiovascular complications of chronic kidney disease, Mechanisms of chronic kidney disease, Urinary biomarkers

Colette DENIS

Colette Denis, PhD, HDR, Associate professor University Paul Sabatier, Principal investigator

Career path

Colette Denis received her PhD from the University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France, in 1985 and was recruited as an Associate Professor at University Paul Sabatier in 1988. From 1983 to 1990 she worked on the regulation of glycolysis in intestinal adenocarcinoma cells, and from 1990 to 2014 she specialized in molecular pharmacology. Since 2015, Colette Denis is a principal investigator at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U11297.

Main domains of expertise

Pharmacology, Kidney physiology, Plasma /urine biochemistry, Histology, pesticides and kidney.

Jean-Sebastien SAULNIER-BLACHE

Jean Sébastien Saulnier-Blache (PhD, Research Director).

Career path

Jean Sébastien Saulnier-Blache obtained his PhD in Molecular Pharmacology from the Paul Sabatier University in Toulouse in 1990, and obtained a principal investigator position at INSERM in Toulouse. After 2 years as a post-doctoral fellow in the Molecular Biology field at the University of South Carolina (Charleston, SC), he continued his career at INSERM in Toulouse.

Main domains of expertise

pathophysiology of obesity and diabetes, adipose tissue development and metabolism, phospholipid mediators, chronic kidney disease.

Julie BELLIERE

Dominique CHAUVEAU

Stéphane DECRAMER

Stanislas FAGUER

Stanislas Faguer, MD, PhD, Professor of Nephrology

Career path

Stanislas Faguer received his PhD in Molecular Genetic at the University Hospital of Toulouse in 2013, and his MD in 2010. He also received additional graduations in Nephrology (2011), Critical care medicine (2015) and clinical Immunology (2015). He was Associated Professor in the Department of Nephrology and Organ Trnasplantation at the University Hospital of Toulouse from 2015 to 2018, and is now Professor in this Department. He is also involved in the reference center for rare kidney diseases (SORARE) in Toulouse.

Main domains of expertise

Acute kidney injury, transcription factors, kidney tubules, rare immunological disorders.

Alexis PIEDRAFITA

Ivan TACK

Benjamin BREUIL

Benjamin Breuil, Engineer Inserm

Career path

Benjamin Breuil received his technical degree in France, in 1998. From 1999 to 2008 he worked as an assistant engineer in food security and pharmaceutical companies and acquired different skills in analytical chemistry, robotic and transcriptomics. Recruited permanently at INSERM in 2014, promoted engineer in 2020, Benjamin Breuil is a member of the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1297 since 2008.

Main domains of expertise

Urinary biomarker, Clinical proteomics, Metabolomics, Capillary Electrophoresis coupled to Mass Spectrometry (CE-MS)

Mélinda ALVES

Melinda Alves, Engineer Inserm

Career path

Melinda Alves received her Master degree in Health Biology option Virology, Gene Therapy and Vectorology from the Paul Sabatier University, Toulouse, France, in 2019. She joined the Renal Fibrosis Lab, in September 2019 as an engineer in the field of renal failure at INSERM U1297.

Main domains of expertise

Animal experiments, Acute kidney disease, Histology, Cellular & Molecular Biology

Manon BRUNET

Manon Brunet, Engineer, Inserm

Career path

Manon Brunet received her PhD from the University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France, in 2021. From 2017 to 2021 she worked as a PhD student in the field of pancreatic tumorigenesis at the TOULOUSE Cancer Research Center. She was recruited as a research engineer at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1297, in February 2022.

Main domains of expertise

Animal experiments, Cellular and Molecular biology, Histology/immunohistochemistry, Biochemistry.

Marie BULEON

Marie Buléon, Engineer University Paul Sabatier

Career path

Marie Buléon received her PhD from the University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France, in 2008. From 2004 to 2008 she worked as a PhD student in chronic kidney disease. She was recruited as an Engineer at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1297, in 2009.

Main domains of expertise

Animal experiments, Histology, Plasma/urine biochemistry, Acute kidney disease, Chronic kidney disease,

Audrey CASEMAYOU

Audrey Casemayou, Engineer, CHU Toulouse

Career path

Audrey Casemayou received her PhD from the University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France, in 2010 in the field of regulatory T cells and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. From 2011 to  2019 she worked as a post-doctoral researcher in the field of HNF1B and acute renal diseases at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1048. Since 2019, she was recruited as an engineer at the Renal Fibrosis Lab.

Main domains of expertise

Acute kidney disease, HNF1beta, Cellular & Molecular biology, Histology/immunohistochemistry, Renal fibrosis mechanisms

Eléonore DELECROIX

Eléonore Delecroix, Engineer, Inserm

Career path

Eléonore obtained her Master’s degree at UPVD, Perpignan, France, in 2020. Her studies in bioactive molecules and environment allowed her to develop skills in analytical chemistry. She was recruited as an assistant engineer at the Renal Fibrosis Laboratory, INSERM U1297, in April 2022.

Main domains of expertise

Urinary and plasma biomarkers, mass spectrometry, capillary electrophoresis.

Guylène FEUILLET

Engineer University Paul Sabatier

Career path

Guylène Feuillet received her master degree from the University Claude Bernard, Lyon, France, in 2005. From 2005 to 2014 she worked as an engineer in the field of intestinal diseases at INRA Toxalim/INSERM CPTP, Toulouse. Since 2015, Guylène Feuillet is an engineer at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1048.

Main domains of expertise

Animal experiments, Histology/immunohistochemistry, Biochemistry, Molecular biology

Eric NEAU

 Engineer Inserm

Career path

Eric Neau received his master degree in cellular biology, option genetics from the University Pierre and Marie Curie, (UPMC Paris VI), France, in 1989. From 1991 to 1999 he worked as an assistant engineer at INSERM U 142, Hôpital St Antoine (Paris) in the field of gene expression IGFBP1 (insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1) in liver and endometrium and, was recruited as an assistant engineer at INSERM, Toulouse, in 1999. Since 2008, Eric Neau is a research engineer at the Renal Fibrosis Lab, INSERM U1048.

Main domains of expertise

Molecular biology, Quantitative PCR, miRNA

Mouhamed SEYE

Mouhamed Seye, Engineer, Inserm

Career path

Mouhamed Seye received his master’s degree in stochastic methods and computer science for decision making from the University of Pau and Pays de l’Adour, Pau, France, in 2021. He joined the RF Lab in November 2021 as a research engineer in the field of renal failure, INSERM U1297.

Main domains of expertise

Statistical analysis, Biostatistics, Bioinformatics tools, R – python – SQL programming, Web development, Urinary biomarkers, Clinical proteomics, Metabolomics.

Lucie FERNANDEZ

Lucie Fernandez, PhD Student

Career path

Lucie joined the RF-lab in January 2022 for her research internship of master degree in Pathophysiology at Paul Sabatier University. She is now a PhD student in the team to study the development of vascular calcifications in kidney transplant patients.

Main domains of expertise

Animal experiments, Cellular and Molecular biology.

Snigdha RAO

Snigdha Rao, PhD student

Career path

Snigdha completed her Bachelor’s in Engineering (Biotechnology) from M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru in 2016. Subsequently she obtained her Master’s degree in Molecular Biology from Umeå University, Sweden. She then worked at Jubilant Biosys Limited, Bengaluru in the Oncology team, after which she worked as a Junior Research Fellow at the Institute of Bioinformatics and Applied Biotechnology, Bengaluru, where her work focused on the generation of engineered cells for therapy. In December 2020, she joined the RF Lab as a PhD student in the CARe PhD program to study immunosenescence targeting to prevent kidney disease in the elderly.

Teresa FRATTINI

Teresa Frattini, PhD student

Career path

Teresa is an Italian student who obtained her Bachelor’s degree in 2019 in Biotechnology at Alma Mater Studiorum in the University of Bologna. She subsequently enrolled in the Master’s degree course in Medical, Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology at the University of Parma, where she expanded her knowledge in the field of regenerative medicine. After graduating in 2021, she won a 6 months Research Scholarship at the Normal Anatomy Laboratory in Parma. She joined the RF-lab in December 2022 as a new MSCA PhD student involved in the Discovering Collagen type-I (DisCo-I) project.

François CHAMARAUX

François Chamaraux, Scientific mediator, Inserm

Career path

After a PhD in biophysics (“Cell motility by actin polymerization: some experimental and theoretical aspects”), obtained in 2005 at the University of Lyon, François Chamaraux turned to teaching physics and mathematics on the one hand (ULB/EPFC, Brussels), and scientific mediation on the other hand (general scientific papers, workshops intended for general public, adults and children). Since 2021, he is a scientific mediator in the SoEcoHealth project, for the network Holimitox.

Mickaël CHABBERT

Mickaël Chabbert, Engineer Inserm

Career path

Mickaël received his master’s degree from Paul Sabatier University, Toulouse, France in 2020. From 2020 to 2022, he worked at the french blood bank and for nine months at Softmat as a biology engineer. He has been recuted at Renal Fibrosis Lab as a biology engineer in september 2023.

Main domains of expertise

Cell culture, Immunohistochemistry, Imaging, Molecular biology