The Team

We are a French team from Grenoble, a well known city for skiing and nanotechnology. We are forming a joint team between biology students from Université Grenoble 1 (Joseph Fourier University) and engineer students from Grenoble INP Phelma (Grenoble Institute of technology) that have taken some more specialized courses in biotechnology.

The team will be composed of 11 students that will work in 7 different laboratories (lab directors in parentheses):

• 2 microbiology laboratories (H. Geiselmann, I. Attree)
• 3 laboratories of biotechnology (F. Bruckert, O. Peyret, D. Peyrade)
• 1 Fundamental research laboratory (R. Calemczuk,)
• 1 bioinformatics laboratory (H. de Jong).

Students

Geoffrey Bouchage

Hi everyone! I'm Geoffrey and I come from Albertville, city of the Olympics 1992. I'm a big big fan of the Vancouver Canucks and I'm sorry for the MIT but I don't think Boston will win the Stanley Cup this year! I'm french so I'm totally in love with cheese, bread and wine. You can find here the best food in the whole world! Try it is to adopt it. iGEM ​​is for me a wonderful life experience that I could not miss.

Felix Ciceron

I am Felix Ciceron and I am studying molecular and cellular biology at the University Joseph Fourier in Grenoble, France. I would like to work in bioremediation, bio-detection of pollution, or enzymatic engineering. All of these fields require both laboratory and project skills. I believe the iGEM competition is a tremendous way to get experience of working in a team, as it combines the spirit of competition with learning.

Marion Cristea

Hey Folks! If you've started Clement's and Geoffrey's descriptions, you'll probably believe that we are obsessed by food. As French people, it's true. But we are also interested in many other things. For example, as you, I decided to launch into this Great Human Adventure because I'm convinced that Synthetic Biology is the futur and I'm looking forward to meet people from everywhere. Sport also represents a large part of my hobbies: running, cross-country biking, swimming, climbing... One last thing to fit with the French stereotype! Even if I come from the Alpes, I prefere dishes from the South like Ratatouille, Bouillabaisse or Soupe au Pistou.

Morgane DeGasperi

Hi everyone! I’m Morgane, and I come from Grenoble. Logic? Well no! As Grenoble is one of the best student cities, almost the entire team doesn’t come from here. On the other side, I prefer listen music rather than sports making: I have never skied. The participation to iGEM is a unique experience, to have an approach of synthetic biology but is also a human adventure. And I’m proud to participate.

Eric Durandeau

My ambition is to become a researcher, at the interphase of microbiology and immunology. moreover, my other passion are badminton, makeshift job, and informatic. iGEM is really in line with my love for biology. I think this adventure will give to me a great experience and plunge myself in the scientifc world, and show up some meeting with differents people who have alternative science-thinking.

Maxime Huet

Dear competitor, I did not have the pleasure to grow up between the beautiful mountains of the Alps. But since I'm studying in Grenoble, I'm taking the opportunity to go skiing or hiking. What better feeling than to admire this awesome landscape and thinking to the tartiflette waiting for your return in the sweet heat of your beloved home ?

Beside this "food's poetry" I'm studying physics (many different stuff, nuclear, optic, IT, modeling, a spoonful of electronic) and biotechnology at Phelma an engineering school. I like science in general, I practice archery and I'm very fond of rollerskating.

Jean-Baptiste Lugagne

Hi all. I'm a student in information technology, therefore i became the IT guy of the group. Some would say I'm the shepherd of the group but I prefer to see myself as a glimmer of hope for my biologist teammates when their pc crashes down. But don't think I live in symbiosis with my computer, like most of Grenoblois I like outdoor activities such as trail, skiing or climbing.

Clément Masson

Hey! I'm a student in microbiology and genetic engeenering. I participate to iGEM because it's an extraordinary opportunity to work on genetic engineering, and to have a real lab' life experience. Otherwise, what can I say, I come from Albertville like Geoffrey, incidentally I think he is right about cheese,bread and wine. I don't no what can I say moreover, so I think I will leave you with an expression from Savoie : "Qui boit trop de gnole casse la bagnole!"

Feriel Melaine

Hi to all of you!!!

I’m Feriel (alias Fifi) from Joseph Fourier University where I’m finishing my Master in Nanobiotechnology. Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated by what Life Science might achieve, especially by designing new living processes that, I’m sure, will really cause major scientific advancements in the future. So when one of our teacher mentioned the possibility to join Grenoble iGEM team, it immediately excited me and I was determined to participate! This competition is definitely a unique opportunity to learn about life science, experience new things, meet other people and work in a team, all at the same time! An exceptional adventure in few words! Apart from iGEM, I like to cook Kessra and Boureks (Algerian specialties)… I had to talk about food!

Samia Menad

Hello everyone, I’m Samia, I am student in second year of Nanosciences research master, specialty nanobiology, I love biology especially when it is associated with other scientific fields like physics. My participation in the iGEM Grenoble -Team is due to my interest in synthetic biology, I am highly motivated and curious about the project and I am glad to have the opportunity to extend my knowledge in this field. I believe the iGEM is a great human adventure for every member team.

Robin Pinilla

Student in first year of master degrees of engineering for health and drugs (mmm drugs...) speciality biotechnologies, I am particularly interested in cell engienering and biological expression systems. In this context, I find that the iGEM, plus that beeing a great learning tool, is a unique opportunity for students to participate in a project of engineering bacteria from the idea to the functional biological system.

Advisor

Stéphane Pinhal

Interested in engineering the living, I joined the iGEM 2010 Paris team. I think iGEM is very formative on both scientific and human side. I couldn't miss this adventure. We won the Best Foundational Advance Prize. This year, I'm the advisor of the iGEM Grenoble team. It's a new challenge because Grenoble takes part in iGEM for the first time. I want to share my experience with them and help them to reach the Final.

Instructors

Université Joseph Fourier

Hans Geiselmann

I am a microbiologist at the university of Grenoble. In the past, I have combined biophysics, molecular biology and bacteriology to understand the functioning of Escherichia coli. More recently, in a systems biology approach, I have used precise measurements of gene expression to test predictions of mathematical models of the corresponding regulatory system. Synthetic biology, and thus iGEM, is the next step in understanding biological systems: if we really understand the functioning of a system, we can modify its behavior. In iGEM we move from designing a desired behavior to instantiating the network in the real organism: a formidable challenge in interdisciplinary research and a very stimulating endeavor, in large parts thanks to a team of excellent and motivated students from different backgrounds.

Grenoble INP

Franz Bruckert

To my point of view, the most interesting aspect of the iGEM project is the collective construction of a new way of doing bioengineering. The modular approach is clearly more efficient in terms of experimental effort and it also helps understanding how cellular functions are organized. Implementing new functions in bacteria should in turn help to build up more efficient ways to represent the living beings complexity. Besides that, I like and challenges and iGEM is all of this.

Marianne Weidenhaupt

I am a biology and immunology teacher at the Grenoble Institute of Technology-Phelma. One of the important points of my teaching is to train students to be able to work at the interface of different scientific disciplines. iGem is a very exciting challenge that plunges us straight into interdisciplinarity and puts teachers and students face to face with what we aim for in our daily work. Personally I worked in bacterial genetics during my PhD, a field I left some 15 years ago and which I am more than happy to work in again with our team.

INRIA

Hidde De Jong

I am a researcher in bioinformatics and mathematical biology at INRIA Grenoble - Rhône-Alpes. I am particularly interested in the modeling of bacterial regulatory networks.

Delphine Ropers

Graduated in Biochemistry, I developed a strong interest for pluridisciplinarity in the course of my training. I received a PhD in Molecular Biology from Nancy University for my work on the regulation of HIV-1 RNA alternative splicing by modeling and experimental approaches. I am now a researcher within the Systems Biology group Ibis at Inria Grenoble - Rhône-Alpes, a French research institute in computer science and control. I work on the mathematical modeling and experimental validation of biochemical regulatory networks involved in bacterial adaptation to environmental cues.

CEA

Robert Baptist

Dr. Robert Baptist, physicist, is Research Director at CEA. He is an author or a co-author of 60 publications and 15 patents. He has recently leaded the interdisciplinary and transversal CEA program ChimTronique on chemistry applied to nanoelectronics. Today, he participates to the scientific animation of MINATECÒ and enjoys the active contact with the newly created Grenoble iGEM group.

Roberto Calemczuk

I am a physicist working at the CEA-Grenoble. My research field is mainly focused on bioanalytical devices, in particular on new methods for the rapid detection and the study of bacteria. My idea in the IGM context is to marry together two domains of excellence in Grenoble: microtechnology and bacteriology.