Feedback from Sophie Langouet Prigent, University of Rennes Inserm Research Director at IRSET on an exchange to Masaryk University in the Czech Republic as part of the EDUC-SHARE* project.
Dear Sophie, you are the Director of Research at the Research Institute for Environmental and Occupational Health (IRSET) at the University of Rennes, where you head the DYMEC2 team (Dynamics of MicroEnvironment, Contaminants and Cancer). You were a prizewinner in the EDUC-SHARE call for projects, giving you access to the research infrastructures of its 6 European partner universities. You selected Masaryk University in the Czech Republic and did your mobility there. Could you share your experience with us?
My research focuses on what happens to environmental contaminants during hepatic fibrosis. Using 3D human culture models that mimic this pathology in vitro, we are studying the mechanisms of toxicity of contaminants of concern on a cellular and molecular scale.
I'm particularly interested in the impact of endocrine disruptors on different liver metabolisms. As part of several European projects, I am developing predictive models to calculate the impact of these chemical molecules in the various cellular compartments. In our team, we are trying to understand how endocrine disruptors arrive in the cell and act on different targets. To do this, we have developed innovative 3D cell culture models (spheroids, organoids) that can be precisely monitored using confocal microscopy. Masaryk University has a particularly powerful system for these analyses in its CEITEC laboratory and its CELLIM cell imaging platform. Thanks to the EDUC call for projects, I had easy access to this resource. We treated the organoids in Rennes with the contaminants of interest and carried out the analysis at CEITEC CELLIM.
How was your stay at Masaryk University?
My stay at Masaryk University was fantastic!
CEITEC CELLIM is a very modern facility with state-of-the-art research equipment and a number of experienced, dedicated staff. The analyses carried out enabled me to speed up my research by obtaining innovative results. Once the results are consolidated, we will work with our partners to develop them into a joint publication.
I was also able to visit other research facilities and I was very impressed by their quality. Masaryk University has superb facilities and impressive resources. This visit enabled me to get to know the RECETOX laboratory better, which is a very dynamic laboratory with many similarities with IRSET in terms of research topics. We identified a number of possible collaborations.
During my visit, I was invited to give a conference to all the institute's researchers. I was able to meet many people and initiate new collaboration opportunities. I also found this opportunity very beneficial thanks to the discussions I had with doctoral students interested in doing a postdoc in France.
My trip also made me aware of the attractiveness of the Czech Republic's geographical location: situated at the heart of Europe, it benefits from an impressive mix of PhD students and young researchers. I am now promoting Masaryk University to my students as a potential location for a PhD or postdoc.
How has this experience benefited your future projects?
This experience has created a real emulation with multiple impacts. I really benefited from a remarkable welcome and I'd like to welcome my counterpart in Rennes to strengthen our collaboration. This has also led to a response to another call for EDUC cofunding, for the obtention of a co-directed thesis that will start this autumn. In addition, I am hosting a Czech PhD student for a 3-month stay in the DYMEC2 team from January 2025. I've also had some applications for postdocs.
To conclude, I would say that, thanks to this technological incentive, I have strengthened my existing research collaboration by getting to know each other better. My trip has enabled me to discover new teams and infrastructures that IRSET researchers will be happy to seek out for new European projects.
Would you encourage your colleagues to take advantage of this experience?
Yes, I would! I am convinced that the success of collaborations depends not only on complementary expertise, but also on the quality of the human relationships; and this programme enables both. By getting to know each other better, we can put the collaboration on the right footing for effective and lasting collaboration.
*This call for research projects requesting access to EDUC research infrastructures is part of the EDUC-SHARE project, funded by the Horizon 2020 programme to develop the research-innovation-science and society pillar in European universities.