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Assistant Professor
Institut Pasteur de Tunis
Tel: +216 71 783022 ext. 505
Email: chaouki.benabdessalem@pasteur.tn or chaoukib12@gmail.com
VALIDATE Role:
Network Investigator
Research Keywords:
Human immunology to TB
Biography:
Chaouki Benabdessalem is leading a group with research interests focused on the study of immune responses during the course of human TB infection. The major aims are to better understand the mechanisms underlying immune responses to mycobacteria in order to: i.) develop new diagnostic tools by identifying immune markers able to define infection status and predict progression towards active disease, ii.) identify prevention of disease vaccine candidate(s). Extrapulmonary TB, mainly TB lymphadenitis is currently a public health problem in Tunisia as well as in many countries. Its diagnosis is challenging. We are funded to: i.) develop/evaluate new immunodiagnostic tools, ii.) identify biosignatures for diagnosis of TB lymphadenitis by studying local vs systemic immune responses to Mtb. In collaboration with Robert Modlin from UCLA, we recently got a top scored NIH-RO1 grant in order to study the cellular and molecular architecture of human TB granuloma.
Key Publications:
- Rania Bouzeyen, Saurabh Chugh, Tannu Priya Gosain , Mohamed-Ridha Barbouche, Meriam Haoues, Kanury V.S. Rao, Makram Essafi † and Ramandeep Singh † . Co-administration of Akt inhibitor MK-2206 enhances the efficacy of BCG vaccine against Mycobacterium tuberculosis in mice and guinea pigs. In press Front Immunol 2021 doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.645962. † Co-senior and corresponding authors
- Rania Bouzeyen, M Haoues, MR Barbouche, R Singh and M Essafi. FOXO3 Transcription Factor Regulates IL-10 Expression in Mycobacteria-Infected Macrophages, Tuning Their Polarization and the Subsequent Adaptive Immune Response. Front Immunol. 2019 Dec 12;10:2922. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.02922.
- Amira Refai, Sami Gritli, Mohamed-Ridha Barbouche and Makram Essafi. Mycobacterium tuberculosis Virulent Factor ESAT-6 Drives Macrophage Differentiation Toward the Pro-inflammatory M1 Phenotype and Subsequently Switches It to the Anti-inflammatory M2 Phenotype Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology. DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2018.00327
- Haoues M, Refai A, Mallavialle A, Barbouche MR, Laabidi N, Deckert M and Essafi M. Forkhead box O3 (FOXO3) Transcription Factor mediates Apoptosis in BCG-Infected Macrophages. Cell Microbiol. 2014 Apr 8. doi: 10.1111/cmi.12298
- Hanene Sahli, Aymen Mouelhi, Mohamed Fethi Diouani, Lotfi Tlig, Amira Refai,Ramzi Boubaker Landoulsi, Mounir Sayadi and Makram Essafi . An advanced intelligent ELISA test for bovine tuberculosis diagnosis. Biomedical Signal Processing and Control 46 (2018) 59–66. Diouani MF, Ouerghi O, Refai A, Belgacem K, Tlili C, Laouini D, Essafi M. Detection of ESAT-6 by a label free miniature immuno-electrochemical biosensor as a diagnostic tool for tuberculosis. Mater Sci Eng C Mater Biol Appl. 2017 May 1;74:465-470.
- Refai A, Haoues M, Othman H, Barbouche MR, Moua P, Bondon A, Mouret L, Srairi-Abid N, Essafi M. Two distinct conformational states of Mycobacterium tuberculosis virulent factor ESAT-6 are behind the discrepancy around its biological functions. FEBS J. 2015 Nov;282(21):4114-29.
- Patent N°: TN2013/0198: Use of FOXO3 activators to prevent/treat Tuberculosis in mammals. Inventors: Makram Essafi and Meriam Haoues
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