NAmur Research Institute for LIfe Sciences
NARILIS honors Emeritus Professor Yves Poumay with a “Journey to the depths of epidermis”
On November 22, 2024, NARILIS organized a special scientific event to celebrate the distinguished career of Emeritus Professor Yves Poumay, renowned for his contributions to skin biology and physiopathology. The event delved into the depths of epidermis through presentations delivered by six guest speakers.
The program opened with talks by two of long-standing collaborators of Yves Poumay. Prof. Bernard Mignon, veterinarian at ULiège and Prof. Arjen Nikkels, dermatologist at CHU de Liège, discussed comparative clinical aspects of dermatophytosis in animals and humans.
Prof. Michel Simon, research director at the Université de Toulouse, focused on filaggrin, a key protein for the epidermal barrier function, also known to play a role in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis. He provided insights into filaggrinolysis and the enzymes involved in the complex filaggrin metabolism.
Postdoctoral researcher in Yves Poumay’s team from 2014 till 2017 and now professor at Université Hassan II de Casablanca, Prof. Abdallah Mound went back over his postdoctoral research at Institut Pasteur de Lille (2018-2024) on the role of the NLRP6 receptor in epithelial cell senescence.
Dr. Gilles Lemaître, research engineer at Université d'Evry/Paris Saclay, shed light on the characteristics of epithelial stem cells present within the human skin. He discussed the immaturity of epidermal stem cells at the level of coding and non-coding genomes.
Finally, Prof. Laure Dumoutier presented the mechanisms by which cytokines can modulate the inflammatory response and control or exacerbate certain diseases. Her talk emphasized on the role of the family of IL-20 related cytokines in skin inflammatory pathologies.
The program also featured several abstract-selected short talks given by young scientists: Dr. Wilfried Poirier (ULiège), Elea Denil (UNamur), Juliette de Lhonneux (UCLouvain, de Duve institute), Dr. Vincent Foulon MD (UCLouvain, IREC), Ornella Cala (UCLouvain, de Duve institute) and Mathilde Choteau (UCLouvain, de Duve institute).
To conclude the meeting, Prof. Charles Nicaise (UNamur) delivered a retrospective of Yves Poumay’s career as professor of Cellular biology and Histology at the Faculty of medicine of UNamur, as well as founder of the Cell and Tissue Laboratory (LabCeTi). His lab is at the forefront of the development of reconstructed human epidermis models, an internationally recognized alternative to animal experiments for the study of skin biology. Over the past decade, Yves Poumay’s research has been devoted to modelling and studying epidermal pathologies in vitro, including atopic dermatitis and fungal infections.
The day ended on a celebratory note with testimonials and videoclips from colleagues and close collaborators, a convivial drink, and a festive walking dinner.
The organizers – Charles Nicaise, Catherine Lambert de Rouvroit, Emilie Faway, Bastien Tirtiaux, Eléa Denil, Valérie De Glas and Virginie van Scherpenzeel Thim – would like to thank all the sponsors of the event for their support: CliniSciences, Labconsult, MLS, Technigen, FNRS, UNamur and NARILIS.
