Development of an in vitro dermatophytosis model: towards research valorization with MycInflamm

The research group of Prof. Yves Poumay (UNamur, URPhyM) is devoted to the study of normal skin biology and cutaneous pathology. The lab is a pioneer in developing 3D in vitro skin models mimicking features of several epidermal diseases, in order to better understand disease pathogenesis and to potentially screen new curative or preventive treatments.

From 2014 to 2018, Emilie Faway dedicated her doctoral research to investigating the pathogenesis of the dermatophyte Trichophyton rubrum using an in vitro reconstructed human epidermis model (Faway et al., 2017; Faway et al., 2019).

Following the completion of her PhD thesis, she became involved in the “MycEpi” project, which aimed at further validation and improvements of the model, especially through comparison of the infection process between the in vitro model and an in vivo mouse model (Faway et al., 2021). This subsequent phase of her research was made possible thanks to funding from the Walloon Region under the Win2Wal program.

In 2024, the project is going a step further with “MycInflamm”, a proof-of-concept (POC) supported through the “Fonds de Maturation”. This fund, allocated by the Walloon Region to the universities, is designed to enable research promoters to carry out a POC phase following encouraging research results and preceding the initiation of a spin-off project.

With “MycInflamm”, Prof. Yves Poumay and Dr. Emilie Faway strive to develop an in vitro dermatophytosis model including cell lines deleted for TLR2 and Dectin-1 receptors. This model will facilitate the study of the specific roles played by these receptors in recognizing dermatophytes and triggering inflammatory responses. The aim is to identify new therapeutic targets to control inflammation and reduce the severity of lesions. Ultimately, the researchers hope to develop a diagnostic tool that can predict the inflammatory potential of dermatophytes.

This promising project will undoubtedly contribute to the progress in dermatophytosis treatment, a condition whose prevalence is estimated at 25% and has been steadily increasing over the past two decades.

Contact: emilie.faway@unamur.be and yves.poumay@unamur.be

Crédit photo: Christophe Swijsen