Ludovic Jullien
Paris
Who is Ludovic Jullien ?
Dr. Jullien have been trained as a chemist at Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS, Paris) and Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC, Paris). After his PhD in Supramolecular Chemistry and Photophysics (Prof. Jean-Marie Lehn, Collège de France, and Prof. Bernard Valeur, Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris) his my post-doc in Soft Matter and Biophysics (Prof. Helmut Ringsdorf, Mainz, and Prof. Erick Sackmann Münich, Germany), he became Research Assistant at CNRS (Collège de France) and then Professor at Sorbonne Université and ENS. His culture is at the triple interface between Chemistry, Biology, and Physics. Dr. Jullien's research activity has always been motivated and inspired by the amazing properties of living matter. Leading experimental, theoretical, and instrumental developments, He has correspondingly introduced various chemical tools for quantitative dynamic descriptions in Biology and conversely interrogated dynamic biological phenomena with the perspective of applications in Chemistry.
Pioneers in Light-controlled biology
At the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, chemists Ludovic Jullien, Isabelle Aujard, and Thomas Le Saux have long been fascinated by the potential of light to precisely control biological processes. Their collaborative efforts have led to the development of innovative tools that allow researchers to manipulate protein activity with spatial and temporal precision.
Their work culminated in the creation of Actiflash, a photoinducible activator that enables researchers to control protein functions in live cells and organisms using light. This groundbreaking tool reflects their commitment to bridging chemistry and biology to advance scientific discovery.
Ludovic Jullien, Isabelle Aujard & Thomas Le Saux
Actiflash: Harnessing light to control protein activity
The concept behind Actiflash was to develop a molecule that could remain inactive until exposed to light, thereby providing researchers with precise control over protein activation. By modifying a tamoxifen-like molecule called cyclofen with a photolabile protecting group, the team created a compound that, upon UV or two-photon illumination, releases active cyclofen. This active form then binds to engineered estrogen receptor ligand-binding domains (ERT2), triggering the translocation of fused proteins into the nucleus to activate transcription or induce recombination .
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