On the occasion of Léa Pechtimaldjian‘s thesis, Team 5 (TRIO2) invites Bernhard Wehrle-Haller, member of the jury, to present a seminar to the scientific community.

Bernhard Wehrle-Haller PhD
University Medical Center, Geneva, Switzerland

“The multiple roles of integrins in the assembly of fibronectin fibrils in the tumor stroma”

Abstract:
The formation and growth of tumors depends on oxygen supply, but also on mechanical support through increased synthesis of the extracellular matrix. Increased extracellular matrix stiffness enhances the survival capacity of tumor cells under therapeutic stress. At the same time, tumor cells stimulate host cells to produce a supportive extracellular matrix. The mechanisms of this feedback are not well understood, and there is no treatment to reverse the fibrotic response in the tumor stroma. Since integrins are essential receptors for tumor binding to the extracellular matrix, but are also involved in the synthesis of extracellular matrix fibers, we asked about the nature of intracellular connections and intracellular signaling that control how integrins are used by tumor or stromal cells in tumors. In a clinical approach, we analyzed different types of glioblastoma to better understand the physiological roles of integrins in this type of cancer.

Biography:
Studied biochemistry in Basel, Switzerland; Thesis in the field of extracellular matrix (tenascin, laminin, fibronectin, and neurite growth), Biozentrum Basel, Switzerland; Postdoc: in Oregon, US, directional migration of embryonic melanoblasts and role of growth factors; Return to Switzerland, Geneva, then appointment as Associate Professor, role of integrin family receptors in cell adhesion and migration.