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Damien Bertheloot, PhD

Alumnus

Bernardo Franklin Lab

Bio Summary

Damien Bertheloot is passionate about the signature dying cells leave behind and the impact these molecular patterns have on the immune system. His first taste for the world of innate immunity came from an internship in the laboratory of Prof. Bryan Williams (Monash University, Melbourne, Australia). Coming back to Europe for his doctoral studies, Damien joined the newly founded Institute of Innate Immunity under the mentorship of Prof. Eicke Latz (University of Bonn, Germany), where he investigated the role of the receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) in the sensing of nucleic acids by endosomal Toll-like receptors (TLRs). After graduation, he joined IFM Therapeutics, a biotech startup that develops drugs targeting the innate immune system. There, Damien contributed to the discovery of small-molecule medicines targeting the innate immune receptors NLRP3 and STING, which are now tested in the clinic for treatment of cancer or inflammatory diseases. Stronger from this successful experience, Damien decided to come back to his academic roots and joined the laboratory of Prof. Bernardo Franklin in May 2019, keeping a sharp focus on innate immune research with translational potential.

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Hobbies

Music (classical singing), Photography, Nature and good food (évidement)

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Experience:

05 / 2019 – present: Post-Doctoral Fellow Bernardo Franklin Laboratory, Institute of InnateImmunity, University Clinic, Bonn, Germany

08 / 2016 – 05 / 2019: Scientist, IFM Therapeutics, Bonn, Germany

12 / 2009 – 07 / 2016: PhD Student, Eicke Latz Laboratory, Institute of Innate Immunity, University Clinic, Bonn, Germany

09 / 2012: Visiting Scientist, Shinji Takeoka and Toru Asahi Laboratories, Department of Life Science and Medical Bioscience, WasedaUniversity (TWIns), Tokyo, Japan

05 / 2010: Visiting Scientist, Hidde Ploegh Laboratory, WhiteheadInstitute for Biomedical Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology,Cambridge MA, US

04 / 2009 – 09 / 2009: Master Trainee, Bryan R.G. Williams Laboratory, Center for CancerResearch, Monash Institute of Medical Research (MIMR, now Hudson Institute),Melbourne, Australia

02 / 2008 – 05 / 2008: Master Trainee, Lluis Fajas Laboratory, Department of Metabolism and Cancer, CRCM, Montpellier, France

Education:

12 / 2009 – 07 / 2016: Ph.D. in Molecular Biomedicine, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany

09 / 2007 – 10 / 2009: Master Degree in Health Biology with specialization in Biotechnology and Cell Engineering, Science University (UM2), Montpellier, France

09 / 2004 – 09 / 2007: Bachelor Degree in Biology, University of Avignon, Avignon, France

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Publications

Bertheloot D., Wanderley C.W., Schneider A.H., Schiffelers L.D., Wuerth J.D., Tödtmann J.M., Maasewerd S., Hawwari I., Duthie F., Rohland C., Ribeiro L.S., Jenster L.M., Rosero N., Tesfamariam Y.M., Cunha F.Q., Schmidt F.I., Franklin B.S., Nanobodies dismantle post-pyroptotic ASC specks and counteract inflammation in vivo, EMBO Mol Med. 2022 Apr 19:e15415
Torres S., Brol M.J., Magdaleno F., Schierwagen R., Uschner F.E., Klein S., Ortiz C., Tyc O., Bachtler N., Stunden J., Bertheloot D., Kitanovic A., Sanchez B., Schrum J., Roush W.R., Franchi L., Byth K., Latz E., Trebicka J., The Specific NLRP3 Antagonist IFM-514 Decreases Fibrosis and Inflammation in Experimental Murine Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis, Front Mol Biosci. 2021 Aug 13;8:715765.
Bertheloot D., Latz E., Franklin B.S., Necroptosis, pyroptosis and apoptosis: an intricate game of cell death, Cell Mol Immunol. 18(5):1106-1121 (2021)
Wuerth J.D., Habjan M., Kainulainen M., Berisha B., Bertheloot D., Superti-Furga G., Pichlmair A., Weber F., eIF2B as a Target for Viral Evasion of PKR-Mediated Translation Inhibition, mBio. 14;11(4):e00976-20 (2020)
Rolfes V., Ribeiro L.S., Hawwari I., Böttcher L., Rosero N., Maasewerd S., Santos M.L.S., Próchnicki T., Silva C.M.S., Wanderley C.W.S., Rothe M., Schmidt S.V., Stunden H.J., Bertheloot D., Rivas M.N., Fontes C.J., Carvalho L.H., Cunha F.Q., Latz E., Arditi M., Franklin B.S., Platelets Fuel the Inflammasome Activation of Innate Immune Cells, Cell Rep. 12;31(6):107615 (2020)
Pelka K., Bertheloot D., Reimer E., Phulphagar K., Schmidt S.V., Christ A., Stahl R., Watson N., Miyake K., Hacohen N., Haas A., Brinkmann M.M., Marshak-Rothstein A., Meissner F., Latz E., The Chaperone UNC93B1 Regulates Toll-like Receptor Stability Independently of Endosomal TLR Transport, Immunity. 15;48(5):911-922.e7 (2018)
Bertheloot D., Naumovski A.L., Langhoff P., Horvath G.L., Jin T., Xiao T.S., Garbi N., Agrawal S., Kolbeck R., Latz E., RAGE Enhances TLR Responses through Binding and Internalization of RNA, J Immunol. 15;197(10):4118-4126 (2016)
Bertheloot D., Latz E., HMGB1, IL-1α, IL-33 and S100 proteins: dual-function alarmins, Cell Mol Immunol. 14(1):43-64 (2016)
Fassl S.K., Austermann J., Papantonopoulou O., Riemenschneider M., Xue J., Bertheloot D., Freise N., Spiekermann C., Witten A., Viemann D., Kirschnek S., Stoll M., Latz E., Schultze J.L., Roth J., Vogl T., Transcriptome assessment reveals a dominant role for TLR4 in the activation of human monocytes by the alarmin MRP8, J Immunol. 15;194(2):575-83 (2015)
Sirois C.M., Jin T., Miller A.L., Bertheloot D., Nakamura H., Horvath G.L., Mian A., Jiang J., Schrum J., Bossaller L., Pelka K., Garbi N., Brewah Y., Tian J., Chang C., Chowdhury P.S., Sims G.P., Kolbeck R., Coyle A.J., Humbles A.A., Xiao T.S., Latz E., RAGE is a nucleic acid receptor that promotes inflammatory responses to DNA, J Exp Med. 21;210(11):2447-63 (2013)
Stutz A., Bertheloot D., Latz E., Innate immune receptors for nucleic acids, Methods Mol Biol. 2011;748:69-82 (2011)

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