Sébastien DUTERTRE, Ph.D., H.D.R.

Education

2015-Habilitation (HDR), certification for doctoral dissertation advising, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France.

2006-Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in the field of Molecular Bioscience. The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

2001-Master’s Degree (M2) - DEA in Toxinology and Toxic interactions in Ecosystems, with honors (mention bien). University of Paris XII, School of Industrial Chemistry of Paris and National Museum of Nature History, Paris, France.

2000-Master’s Degree (M1) in Population and Ecosystem Biology, with honors (mention assez bien). University of Montpellier II, Montpellier, France.

1999-Bachelor’s Degree in Biology of Organisms. University of Montpellier II, Montpellier, France.

1998-DEUG (Two Years scientific University Degree) in life sciences. University of Dijon, Dijon, France.

Professional experiences

Since 2024: French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), research director (DR2), in the Analytical Sciences team (resp. Prof. Christine Enjalbal), Institut des Biomolecules Max Mousseron, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.

11/2013-09/2024: French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), researcher (CR1), in the Analytical Sciences team (resp. Prof. Christine Enjalbal), Institut des Biomolecules Max Mousseron, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.

At the CNRS, I have worked diligently to successfully establish a new research topic (Chemobiology of venoms and toxins team) within my hosting group directed by Prof. Christine Enjalbal.

05/2010-10/2013: University of Queensland Postdoctoral Fellow, in the laboratory of Prof. Richard Lewis, Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

In 2010, I was awarded a UQ postdoctoral fellowship to work in Prof. Richard Lewis’ groups at the IMB. I developed an integrated approach to accelerate the discovery of novel peptides from cone snail venoms, using second generation sequencing technologies and proteomic methods.

03/2008-12/2009: Research Scientist, Atheris laboratories, Plan-les-Ouates, Switzerland. Atheris laboratories is a peer assessed company for its expertise acquired in biochemical services, in bioinformatics and in the field of active molecules coming from animal venoms and other natural origins.

I joined Atheris laboratories to work on an innovative and ambitious post-genomic project dedicated to the discovery and development of novel biopharmaceuticals generated by the broad biodiversity of animal venoms (budget of € 10.7 million funding from the European Union over a five-year period).

01/ 2006-02/2008: EMBO Postdoctoral Fellow in the laboratory of Prof. Heinrich Betz, Neurochemistry Dept., Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Frankfurt, Germany.

At the MPI, I worked on ion channels and transporter structure and function. In addition to the international reputation of the Max-Planck-Institute and the prestigious EMBO award, joining the laboratory of Prof. Betz allowed me to obtain the best training in two-electrode voltage clamp electrophysiology and protein biochemistry, techniques that would appropriately complement my existing scientific skills.

03/2002-10/2005: Ph.D. in the laboratory of Prof. Richard Lewis, Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. “Conopeptides to Probe Membrane Protein Structures and Functions”.

Following my masters (DEA), I moved to the University of Queensland, Australia, to undertake my PhD studies in the laboratory of Prof. Richard Lewis. This move was motivated by the excellence of the research conducted at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience as well as the award of a competitive UQ graduate scholarship. I worked on the discovery, synthesis and pharmacological characterisation of cone snail toxins and their interactions with various membrane receptors.

01/2001-11/2001: DEA’s research internship in the laboratory of Prof. Andre Menez, Department of Protein Studies and Engineering (DIEP), Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), Saclay, France. “Solid Phase Synthesis of two native and modified Muscarinic Toxins, and studies of their Pharmacological Effects on the Human Muscarinic Receptor “.

In the laboratory of Prof. Menez, I was trained in peptide synthesis, pharmacology, protein biochemistry and molecular biology and was for the first time introduced to the fascinating field of toxinology.

02/2000-06/2000: Master’s research internship in the laboratory of Dr Stephane Birot, International Agricultural Research Center for Developing Countries (CIRAD), Montpellier, France. “Geographical Influence of Plutella xylostella (Lep. Yponomeutidae) populations on Oomyzus sokolowskii (Hym. Eulophidae) parasitism “.  

Publications

I have published 94 papers (18 as first author and 27 as corresponding author) in prestigious international journals (e.g. Nature Communications, PNAS, EMBO J) that have attracted >6500 citations (h-index 44, source Google Scholars), as well as 7 book chapters and 20 peer-reviewed conference abstracts (proceedings).

Below are 10 of the most cited papers (full list available here):