Research Interests

Different sensory modalities such as temperature, pain, touch and muscle proprioception are relayed by specific types of somatosensory neurons that reside in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG). These neurons transmit somatosensory information to the CNS by connecting to precise targets in the spinal cord. Depending on their functional specificities, different DRG neuron sub-types display great morphological, molecular and electrophysiological diversity. We are studying the molecular basis of this diversity with a view to establishing how the different neuronal sub-types are specified during development, identifying the key molecular actors that control their correct integration into spinal circuits, and the changes that take place in models of peripheral neuropathies.

We use transgenic mouse models and comparative studies of orthologous genes in mouse and Drosophila to study the specification and connectivity between neurons in this system.

Deepening our knowledge of these fundamental processes will allow us to better understand how different sub-types respond in pathological situations, and potentially to ameliorate the outcome in various types of peripheral neuropathies.

Projects

* Identification and functional analysis of genes expressed in DRG neuron sub-types during development.

* Transcription factors in neural development: an EVO-DEVO approach in fly and mouse

Recent publications

 Bourane S, Garces A, Venteo S, Pattyn A, Hubert T, Fichard A, Puech S, Boukhaddaoui H, Baudet C, Takahashi S, Valmier J and Carroll P. (2009). Low-threshold mechanoreceptor subtypes selectively express MafA and are specified by Ret signalling. Neuron 64(6):857-70.

Ohayon D, Pattyn A, Valmier J, Carroll P and Garces A (2009). The transcription factor zfh1 controls the survival of peripheral subperineurial glia by antagonizing a JNK-dependent apoptotic pathway (EMBO J. 28(20):3228-43.

 Sabourin J, Ackema K, Ohayon D, Guichet P, Perrin F, Garces A, Ripoll C, Charité J, Simonneau L, Kettenmann H, Zine A, Privat A, Valmier J, Pattyn A, Hugnot J.(2009) A Mesenchymal-Like Zeb1(+) Niche Harbors Dorsal Radial GFAP(+) Stem Cells in the Spinal Cord. Stem Cells. 27(11):2722-33.

Hubert T, Grimal S, Carroll P and Fichard-Carroll A (2008). Collagens in the developing and diseased nervous system. Cell Mol Life Sci. Nov 26. [Epub ahead of print]

 M. Boudes, S. Pieraut, J. Valmier, P. Carroll and F. Scamps (2008) Single-cell electroporation of adult sensory neurons for gene screening with RNA interference mechanisms. J. Neurosci. Methods 170(2):204-11

Hubert T, Bourane S, Ventéo S, Mechaly I, Puech S, Valmier J, Carroll P and Fichard-Carroll A (2007). Fibroblast growth factor homologous factor 1 (FHF1) is expressed in a sub-population of CGRP neurons in the murine Dorsal Root Ganglia. J Comp Neurol. Apr 1;507(4):1588-601.

Bourane S, Mechaly I, Venteo S, Garces A, Fichard A, Valmier J and Carroll P (2007). A SAGE-based screen for genes expressed in sub-populations of neurons in the mouse dorsal root ganglion. BMC Neurosci. 8(1):97

Mechaly I, Bourane S, Piquemal D, Al-Jumaily M, Venteo S, Puech S, Scamps F, Valmier J and Carroll P (2006) Gene profiling during development and after a peripheral nerve traumatism reveals genes specifically induced by injury in dorsal root ganglia. Mol. Cell. Neurosci. 32:217−29.