- Maître de Conférences - Assistant Professor
- Université de Poitiers - Equipe Microbiologie de l'Eau
- ascel.samba@univ-poitiers.fr
- +33 (0)5 49 45 40 13
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Interactions amibes libres – bactéries
Amibes libres, Acanthamoeba castellanii, bactérie, signalisation cellulaire
I obtained my PhD in 2009, in the field of Cellular Microbiology under the supervision of Pr Eric Oswald (University of Toulouse, France). Then, I moved to the laboratory of Pr Pascale Cossart (Pasteur Institute, Paris, France) for a post-doc. In 2013, I joined the laboratory “Ecologie et Biologie des Interactions” (EBI) to work on free-living amoebae.
Free-living amoebae (FLA) are pathogenic and opportunistic protozoa commonly found in water systems that feed on bacteria. Bacteria that resist amoebae digestion would be able to resist immune cells phagocytosis. FLA provide nutrients to bacteria and increase their resistance to antimicrobials facilitating dispersion of bacteria. They also protect bacteria from harsh conditions and they are considered as a melting pot that favors exchange of DNA between various intra-amoebal microorganisms and even viruses. Thus, FLA improve emergence and transmission of bacterial pathogens. Under stress conditions such as biocides treatment, FLA differentiate into resistant forms named cysts. This process is known as encystment or encystation. Contamination of water by FLA represents an underestimated public health concern for emerging diseases.
My interest lies on
(i) interactions between FLA and bacteria. I study how bacteria resist amoebal digestion and what host functions are disturbed by bacteria.
(ii) protozoa encystation. Our working model is Acanthamoeba castellanii.
(iii) collaborative studies which involve my background in cellular microbiology.
Acanthamoeba castellanii, bacterial infection, encystment, Legionella pneumophila, senescence.