Research interests

Organization and Dynamics of Plasma Membrane Protrusions: From Biochemistry and Cell Biology to Tissue Engineering, Regenerative Therapy and Diseases

The group of Denis Corbeil seeks to understand the initiating steps of tissue formation, stem cell proliferation and differentiation. He particularly concentrates on cells that express the marker prominin-1 (CD133), including stem cells of the neural and hematopoietic system, and cancer stem cells. Enrichment of prominin proteins on plasma membrane protrusions (microvilli, cilia, filopodia) suggests that prominin-1 might act as an organizer of plasma membrane protrusions, which is of relevance also for human photoreceptor degeneration pathology.