Currently Instructor in the division of Cell and Gene Therapy directed by Dr. Steven Goldman, my work initially focused on the identification, the isolation and the characterization of tumor stem/progenitor cells among human gliomas. By using A2B5-based cell sorting, we have identified and purified a population of tumor cells from human primary gliomas that exhibited features of cancer stem/progenitor cells. My objective has further focused on the identification of genes and signaling pathways that typify glial tumor/stem progenitor cells and distinguish them from their normal counterparts. By directly comparing glioma-derived A2B5+ cells from both low and high-grade tumors to their non-neoplastic A2B5+ homologues isolated from adult human white matter, we identified a discrete cohort of genes and pathways that were dysregulated at every stage of glioma progression. Among these genes, the glycoprotein CD24 and the homeobox transcription factor Six1 were among the highest differentially overexpressed transcripts. We found that CD24 was over-expressed in primary gliomas by a pool of tumor-progenitor like cells able to induce highly infiltrative tumors after orthotopic transplantation in vivo. In addition, we further validated the overexpression of Six1 in various primary gliomas and shown that its silencing potently prevents the growth and the survival of glioma tumor/stem progenitor cells. My work has since been focused on the identification and the characterization of novel causal oncogenes, to examine their functional relevance to gliomagenesis and to study the molecular mechanisms involved in their regulation. In particular, my goal is to elucidate the molecular pathways that underlie the tumorigenic and self-renewal abilities of glioma precursor cells and differentiate them from their normal neural precursors homologues. By doing so, I hope that my work will contribute to the development of pathway-specific tumor precursor targeted therapies in gliomas that will minimize the off-target toxicity on resident precursors.

• Persson AI, Petritsch C, Swartling FJ, Itsara M, Sim FJ, Auvergne R, Goldenberg DD, Vandenberg SR, Nguyen KN, Yakovenko S, Ayers-Ringler J, Nishiyama A, Stallcup WB, Berger MS, Bergers G, McKnight TR, Goldman SA, Weiss WA. Non-stem cell origin for oligodendroglioma. Cancer Cell. 2010 Dec 14; 18(6):669-82.
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• Wang S, Chandler-Militello D, Lu G, Roy NS, Zielke A, Auvergne R, Stanwood N, Geschwind D, Coppola G, Nicolis SK, Sim FJ, Goldman SA. Prospective identification, isolation, and profiling of a telomerase-expressing subpopulation of human neural stem cells, using sox2 enhancer-directed fluorescence-activated cell sorting. J Neurosci. 2010 Nov 3; 30(44):14635-48.
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• Burel-Vandenbos F, Benchetrit M, Miquel C, Fontaine D, Auvergne R, Lebrun-Frenay C, Cardot-Leccia N, Michiels JF, Paquis-Flucklinger V, Virolle T. EGFR immunolabeling pattern may discriminate low-grade gliomas from gliosis. J Neurooncol. 2011 Apr; 102(2):171-8.
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• Rougier A, Auvergne R. [Adult brain neurogenesis and pathology]. Neurochirurgie. 2004 Mar; 50(1):33-41.
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• Auvergne R, Leré C, El Bahh B, Arthaud S, Lespinet V, Rougier A, Le Gal La Salle G. Delayed kindling epileptogenesis and increased neurogenesis in adult rats housed in an enriched environment. Brain Res. 2002 Nov 8; 954(2):277-85.
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• El Bahh B, Auvergne R, Leré C, Brana C, Le Gal La Salle G, Rougier A. Decreased epileptic susceptibility correlates with neuropeptide Y overexpression in a model of tolerance to excitotoxicity. Brain Res. 2001 Mar 16; 894(2):209-17.
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