Research Activities

Projects as PI

2025-2026 - TISSAGE: Role of tissue in the regulation of cell differentiation: conceptual analysis, mathematical modeling and biological validation Funding: Programme Interne Blanc MITI. Collaboration: IBGC, ImmunoConcept (Bordeaux).
2024–2027 - CytoFLAM: Analysis of Flow Cytometry Data for early characterization of Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Funding: Nouvelle-Aquitaine region and Inria center of Bordeaux University. Collaboration: Inria project-team MONC, Bordeaux University Hospital.
2022-2023 - EVOMULTI: Role of metabolism in the EVOlutive transition towards MULTIcellularity : experimental and modelling approaches.
Funding: CNRS MITI 80|Prime. Collaboration: Inria project-team MONC, IBGC (Bordeaux).

I am interested in developing mathematical models for individual cell migration from either their internal organization or their trajectories. The models can be deterministic (advection-reaction, PDE, ODE) or stochastic (SDE, SPDE).

Recently, in a joint work with Annabelle Collin, Giorgia Ciavolella, Julien Granet (Inria MONC, Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux) and in collaboration with Nael Osmani and Jacky Goetz (Goetz Lab for Tumor Biomechanics), we developed and calibrated a deterministic model able to interpret data obtained from microfluidic experiments on Circulating Tumor Cells adhesion to the vascular wall [JTB24].
In a joint work with Nicolas Meunier, Raphaël Voituriez and Claire Alamichel, we have studied trajectories obtained from SPDE models of rigid cells intracellular activity. Several migration behaviours are recovered (diffusive, intermittent, ballistic), together with an experimental relation between persistence speed and durations.

Mathematical Modeling of eco-evolutive competition between unicellular and multicellular forms of yeast cells Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

If multicellularity is one of the most important innovations in life history, the conditions that could have favored its initial selection remain speculative. In the EvoMulti project, the objective is to consider possible conditions from competition experiments between unicellular and multicellular forms of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. They will be interpreted by integro-differential growth-fragmentation equations calibrated with the experimental data. This project corresponds to the PhD thesis of Julien Granet (Inria MONC, Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux), co-supervised with Bertrand Daignan-Fornier (Institut de Biochimie et Génétique Cellulaire) and with Clair Poignard (Inria Center of Rennes University). It is also a collaboration with Benoit Pinson (IBGC). This project has received financial support from the CNRS through the 80|Prime program, and from the Institute of Mathematics for the Planet Earth.

Mathematical modeling of the effect of propranolol on angiosarcoma

Angiosarcoma is a rare and aggressive disease of vascular origin. The beta-blocker propranolol has been shown to have an effet on the disease. However, its precise mode of action remains to decipher. In the MONC4AS project, the aim is to jointly develop biological experiments (in vitro with 2D experiments and 3D spheroids, and in vivo on mice) and mathematical models of tumor growth in order to characterize the action of propranolol from the calibrated models. This project is led by Annabelle Collin (Laboratoire Jean Leray, Inria Monc) and François Moisan (Bordeaux Institute of Oncology - BRIC), and is associated with the post-doctoral position of Tiphaine Delaunay (Inria MONC, Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux) and with the PhD thesis of Faiza Laanani (BRIC). The project is funded by the Interdisciplinary and Exploratory Research program of Bordeaux University.

Statistical learning for clinical data interpretation

I am interested in using and developing statistical learning methods to interpret clinical data and help therapeutic decisions (images, flow cytometry).

In the European project Transcan GLIOMA-PRD, we have proposed a multimodal integration strategy for imaging, transcriptomics and proteomics data to stratify IDH-mutant Low Grade Glioma patients by their relapse risk [IntJCancer25].
In the CytoFLAM project, the objective is to develop statistical learning methods for flow cytometry data obtained at diagnosis for the early prediction of patients biological profile. This project corresponds to the PhD thesis of Jonathan Legrand (Inria MONC, Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux), co-supervised with Baudouin Denis de Senneville (Inria MONC, Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux). It is a collaboration with Pierre-Yves Dumas and Aguirre Mimoun (CHU de Bordeaux, Hôpital Haut Lévèque).

Supervision

PhD supervision and Postdoc collaborations

Since November 2024 - PhD thesis of Jonathan Legrand: Analysis of Flow Cytometry Data for the early characterization of Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
Cosupervision : Baudouin Denis de Senneville.
2024–2025 - Postdoc of Tiphaine Delaunay: Mathematical modeling and data assimilation for deciphering tumor response to propranolol in angiosarcoma.
Cosupervision : Annabelle Collin.
2023–2024 - Postdoc of Giorgia Ciavolella: Mathematical modeling and data assimilation for the dynamics of Circulating Tumor Cells in the blood flow.
Cosupervision : Annabelle Collin.
Since October 2022 - PhD thesis of Julien Granet: Mathematical modeling of the evolutive stabilization of multicellularity in Yeasts.
Cosupervision : Bertrand Daignan-Fornier (IBGC), Clair Poignard.
2018 - CEMRACS project: Study of the effect of the environment on the cell dynamics.
Background: PhD students. Students: Alessandro Cucchi and Lamis Sabbagh. Cosupervisors: Nicolas Meunier and Laurent Navoret.

Undergraduate and Graduate supervision

2020 to 2023 and 2025 - M2 Interdisciplinary projects - Background: M2 Cancer Biology. Duration: 6 weeks (as a project). Cosupervision: Vanja Sisirak (ImmunoConcept), then François Moisan (BRIC).
2025 - M1 Internship - Maële Lebreton-Cheminel: Mathematical modeling of the regulation of purin pathway for Yeasts. Background: 2nd year of Engineering school (ENSTBB - Bordeaux INP). Duration: 6 months.
2025 - M1 Internship - Félicia Dossou: Unsupervised learning for Flow Cytometry data cleaning. Background: M1 CMI ISI (Bordeaux University). Duration: 2.5 months. Cosupervision: Aguirre Mimoun (Bordeaux University Hospital). Funded by RT Math Bio Santé.
2024 and 2025 - Master Internships of Julie Lesthelle: The perspective of being a female student in Licence formation in Mathematics. Background: sociology. Duration: continuous project in M1, 5 months in M2. Supervised by Sophie Duchesne for sociology ; co-supervised with Nicolas Papadakis for mathematical aspects.
2024 - M2 Internship - Léo Raffy: TEP radiomic analysis for myeloma evaluation. Background: M2 in AI and nuclear medicine, Bordeaux University Hospital. Duration: 4 months. Cosupervision: Olivier Saut.
2023 - M2 Internship - Camilla Paleari: Deep-learning analysis of Flow Cytometry Data for the early diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
Background: M2 Computational science and Computational learning, Politecnico di Milano. Duration: 4 months. Cosupervision: Baudouin Denis de Senneville, Nicolas Papadakis, Clair Poignard.

2022 - M2 Internship - Julien Granet: Mathematical modeling and data assimilation for the dynamics of Circulating Tumor Cells in the blood flow.
Background: M2 Numerical Modeling, Bordeaux University. Duration: 6 months. Cosupervision: Annabelle Collin.
2022 - M1 Internship - Léa Comin: Flow Cytometry Data analysis for the diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
Background: M1 Computational and Mathematical Biology, Aix-Marseille University. Duration: 12 weeks. Cosupervision: Clair Poignard, Baudouin Denis de Senneville, Olivier Saut.
2022 - M1 Project and Internship - Julien Hermant: Cell dynamics : modeling and comparison to experimental data. Background: M1 Stochastic Modeling and Statistics, Bordeaux University. Duration: 7 weeks.

2021 - M1 Internship - François Sorre: Numerical simulations of an active particle in a Stokes fluid. Background: 2A Bordeaux INP. Duration: 8 weeks. Cosupervision: Clair Poignard.
2021 - L3 Internship - Manon Charmasson: Modeling the intracellular actin dynamics in quiescent cells. Background: L3 La Rochelle. Duration: 6 weeks. Cosupervision: Clair Poignard, Olivier Saut.
2021 - M1 Internship - Pierre Charitat: Modeling the Snowflake Yeasts dynamics. Background: L3 ENS. Duration: 6 weeks. Cosupervision: Clair Poignard.

2020 - L2 Internship - Robin Hanriot: Modeling the adhesion dynamics of a Circulating Tumor Cell to the vascular wall: parameter sensitivity analysis.
Background: prépa Bordeaux INP 2nd year. Duration: 6 weeks. Cosupervision: Annabelle Collin.