Pierre-Olivier Strale

Bordeaux

Who is Pierre-Olivier Strale ?

Dr. Strale obtained his PhD in 2010 (Poitiers, France) during which he studied cancer cells migration before joining the group of R.M Mège and B. Ladoux (Paris, Singapore) to investigate cell-cell contact formation using biomimetic approaches. He then joined the group of J.B Sibarita and V. Studer (Bordeaux, France), where he participated to the development of a micropatterning technology. Since 2017, He is the Senior Scientist of Alvéole where they develop new products in close collaboration with a CNRS lab leaded by V. Studer. After years of bridging microfabrication and cell research, Pierre-Olivier eventually left the scientific field to devote himself fully to art—bringing the same sense of precision and creativity to his new medium.

The scientist & the sticky solution

Stencell traces its roots back to early 2000s microfluidic innovations, small, flexible “stickers” developed in pioneering labs like here. These early prototypes already hinted at a powerful idea: what if cell culture chambers could be as simple as placing a soft sticker under a microscope?

Stencell: reinventing microfluidics, one peel at a time

Today’s Stencell builds on that legacy. It’s a removable PDMS chamber that sticks onto standard glass slides or petri dishes without glue or adhesives. Once you're done culturing, just peel it off, no residues, no mess, and the glass stays clean. Its design makes it perfect for creating precisely defined cell areas, a key requirement for the wound healing assays for example.

Why researchers love It

Rapid setup: peel and stick to start experiments in seconds
PDMS perks: optically clear, and ideal for live-cell imaging
Versatile designs: single- or multi‐chamber formats to suit various experimental needs
Compatible with modern assays: from drug screening to co-culture studies

Discover Stencell

Several publications

Pasturel A, Strale PO, Studer V. Tailoring 3D cell culture templates with common hydrogels. bioRxiv preprint 370882; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/370882

Ruprecht V, Monzo P, Ravasio A, Yue Z, Makhija E, Strale PO, Gauthier N, Shivashankar GV, Studer V, Albiges-Rizo C, Viasnoff V. How cells respond to environmental cues - insights from bio-functionalized substrates. J Cell Sci. 2017 Jan 1;130(1):51-61. doi: 10.1242/jcs.196162. Epub 2016 Nov 17. PMID: 27856508.

Strale PO, Azioune A, Bugnicourt G, Lecomte Y, Chahid M, Studer V. Multiprotein Printing by Light-Induced Molecular Adsorption. Adv Mater. 2016 Mar 9;28(10):2024-9. doi: 10.1002/adma.201504154. Epub 2015 Dec 21. PMID: 26689426.

Strale PO, Duchesne L, Peyret G, Montel L, Nguyen T, Png E, Tampé R, Troyanovsky S, Hénon S, Ladoux B, Mège RM. The formation of ordered nanoclusters controls cadherin anchoring to actin and cell-cell contact fluidity. J Cell Biol. 2015 Jul 20;210(2):333-46. doi: 10.1083/jcb.201410111. Erratum in: J Cell Biol. 2015 Sep 14;210(6):1033. PMID: 26195669; PMCID: PMC4508897.

Plestant C, Strale PO, Seddiki R, Nguyen E, Ladoux B, Mège RM. Adhesive interactions of N-cadherin limit the recruitment of microtubules to cell-cell contacts through organization of actomyosin. J Cell Sci. 2014 Apr 15;127(Pt 8):1660-71. doi: 10.1242/jcs.131284. Epub 2014 Feb 12. PMID: 24522194.