Expérimental
Glioblastomas (GBMs) are the most lethal primary brain tumours. The absence of effective therapies is mainly due to tumour invasion and to the resistance of invading cells to treatments such as radio- and chemo-therapies. In GBMs, lamin proteins that control nuclear envelope stiffness, have recently emerged as potential markers of aggressiveness and tumourigenicity. Nuclear mechanics has appeared as a key determinant of cancer cell invasion leading us to hypothesize that genes controlling nuclear mechanics of GBM cells may be used as diagnostic tools and potential therapeutic targets to improve the prognostic of GBMs. The working hypotheses of this M2 internship project is that alterations in nuclear mechanics contribute to GBM aggressiveness and directly influence cell invasive behaviour. The intern will first use clinically annotated primary patient-derived GBM cells and rheological techniques (optical tweezers, microfluidics) to measure nuclear morphology and mechanics. Second, he/she will modulate the expression levels of lamins to modify both nuclear mechanics and GBM cell invasion and test whether lamins could be used as potential molecular targets to control GBM aggressiveness.