The study of the interactions of immune and target cells concerns immune cells facing (i) their natural partners, such as the professional APCs, but also (ii), in pathological situations, pathogens or cancer cells. While the former may help understanding the natural processes governing the immune response, the second situation is of paramount importance for developing therapeutic interventions such as immunotherapies and anti-infective drugs.

Concerning the interactions between external pathogens and the immune system of the host they try to invade, we are interested in immune interactions with parasites. With co-evolution, intracellular parasites have elaborated sophisticated strategies to infect their hosts and subvert the immune response. By using the parasite models Leishmania and Coccidia and a panel of imaging and single-cell biophysical techniques, we study how parasites can rely on their structure, mechanics and molecules to infect their hosts   and exploit phagocytic cells as a replicative niche or Trojan horse to disseminate throughout the body. We hope our research could help identifying mechanisms that could be drug-targeted to treat and prevent parasitic diseases.