Dr Caroline Lonez

Biography

In March 2007, I was awarded a PhD in Bioengineering from the Université Libre de Bruxelles, in Belgium, for my research focusing on the transport properties of synthetic cationic lipids. After my PhD, I worked on a project supported by the Walloon Region of Belgium on an adjuvant formulation for a prophylactic vaccine against dust mite allergy. From October 2008 to September 2012, I worked in the laboratory of Structure and Function of Biological Membranes in Brussels as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the National Fund for Scientific Research in Belgium (FRS/FNRS) in the field of lipids in the context of the innate immune system, and their interactions with Toll-like and NOD-like receptors. Thanks to a travel grant from the Wiener Anspach Foundation, I have started to collaborate with the Department of Veterinary Medicine and the Department of Biochemistry in Cambridge in 2011 till september 2013.

Since October 2013, I am an Intra-European Fellowships for career development (IEF) - Marie Curie Action post-doctoral research fellow and pursue this work in the Department of Veterinary Medicine in Cambridge.

Qualifications

1999 - Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium

2002 - Master in Bioengineering, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium

2003 - Post-graduate Diploma in Applied Sciences, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium

2007 - PhD thesis in Bioengineering, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium

Research

I am interested in studying the interaction between some cationic lipids and the lipopolysaccharides receptors TLR4/MD2 at the structural level.

In order to elucidate how TLR4/MD2 receptor complex recognize this new class of ligands and initiate the underlying signalling pathways, I want to identify the regions that, in TLR4 or MD2, determine the ability of these lipids to induce signalling events.

The final goal of my project is to generate and characterize new cationic derivatives able to modulate the immune responses activated through TLR4, leading possibly to the development of new adjuvants for vaccines.

Keywords

•        Lipid carriers

•        NOD-like receptors

•        Immunostimulation

•        Cationic lipid

•        Toll-like receptors

Departmental Website

http://www.vet.cam.ac.uk/directory/lonez

Research Groups

•        Professor Clare Bryant's group - http://www.vet.cam.ac.uk/directory/ceb27@cam.ac.uk

•        Laboratory of Structure and Function of Biological Membranes - http://sfmb.ulb.ac.be/

Selected publications

  • Lonez C, Bessodes M, Scherman D, Vandenbranden M, Escriou V, Ruysschaert JM. (2014) Cationic lipid nanocarriers activate Toll-like receptor 2 and NLRP3 inflammasome pathways. Nanomedicine. 10(4):775-82.
  • Gustot A, Raussens V, Dehousse M, Dumoulin M, Bryant CE, Ruysschaert JM, Lonez C (2013) Activation of innate immunity by lysozyme fibrils is critically dependent on cross-β sheet structure.  Cell Mol Life Sci. 70:2999-3012.
  • Lonez C, Vandenbranden M, Ruysschaert JM (2012) Cationic lipids activate intracellular signaling pathways. Adv. Drug Deliv Rev. 64:1749-58.
  • Oliveira TR, Duarte EL, Lamy MT, Vandenbranden M, Ruysschaert JM, Lonez C (2012) Temperature-Dependence of Cationic Lipid Bilayer Intermixing: Possible Role of Interdigitation. Langmuir. 28, 4640-7.
  • Pabst G, Lonez C, Vandenbranden M, Jestin J, Radulescu A, Ruysschaert JM & Gutberlet T (2012) Stalk-free membrane fusion of cationic lipids via an interdigitated phase. Soft Matter. 8, 7243-7249
  • Wilmar A, Lonez C, Vermeersch M, Andrianne M, Perez-Morga D, Ruysschaert JM, Vandenbranden M, Leo O, & Temmerman ST (2012) The cationic lipid, diC14 amidine, extends the adjuvant properties of aluminum salts through a TLR-4- and caspase-1-independent mechanism. Vaccine, 30, 414-424.
  • Lonez C, Lensink MF, Kleiren E, Vanderwinden JM, Ruysschaert JM, & Vandenbranden M (2010) Fusogenic activity of cationic lipids and lipid shape distribution. Cell Mol. Life Sci., 67, 483-494.
  • Lonez C, Lensink MF, Vandenbranden M, & Ruysschaert JM (2009) Cationic lipids activate cellular cascades. Which receptors are involved? Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 1790, 425-430.
  • Lonez C, Vandenbranden M, & Ruysschaert JM (2008) Cationic liposomal lipids: from gene carriers to cell signaling. Prog. Lipid Res., 47, 340-347.
  • Tanaka T, Legat A, Adam E, Steuve J, Gatot JS, Vandenbranden M, Ulianov L, Lonez C, Ruysschaert JM, Muraille E, Tuynder M, Goldman M, & Jacquet A (2008) DiC14-amidine cationic liposomes stimulate myeloid dendritic cells through Toll-like receptor 4. Eur. J. Immunol., 38, 1351-1357.
  • Lonez C, Legat A, Vandenbranden M, & Ruysschaert JM (2008) DiC14-amidine confers new anti-inflammatory properties to phospholipids. Cell Mol. Life Sci., 65, 620-630.