Cécile HERVE

I am interested in seaweed glycobiology. Part of my work is dedicated in unravelling the cell-wall architecture of brown algae, with a specific focus on the alginates and fucans/fucoidans polysaccharides. I develop and distribute monoclonal antibodies to the global community for screening and imaging cell-wall glycans from brown algae. I am currently strongly involved in pioneering studies on alginate and fucan biosynthetic pathways.

I use a range of techniques from molecular to biological sciences to gain fundamental insights into how brown algae function. My research is driven by 2 perspectives:

1. understanding molecular processes critical to the physiology of brown algae, through an evolutive angle, and with the development of new tools and pipelines
2. translating this knowledge to better understand kelp resilience in the wild and in offering new avenues for the bioprospecting of algal biomass from off-shore seaweed farms. 

Positions

2025 – now; Directrice de recherche, Brown Algal Glycans team, CNRS, SB Roscoff
2010-2025; Chargée de recherche, Marine Glycobiology team, CNRS, SB Roscoff
2009-2010; Post-doctoral fellow, Marine Glycobiology team, CNRS, SB Roscoff, France
2007-2009; Post-doctoral fellow, JP Knox- Cell Wall team, University of Leeds, UK
2006-2007; Post-doctoral fellow, Marine Glycobiology team, CNRS, SB Roscoff, France
2002-2006; PhD student, Functional Genomics team, CNRS, SB Roscoff, France

Education and key qualifications

2022; Habilitation to Direct Research (HDR), ED227 Sorbonne University, France
2006; PhD in Plant biology & Phycology, University of Rennes 1, France
2002; Master Degree in Fisheries Sciences, ENSA, Rennes, France
2001; Bachelor Degree in Agronomy, ENITA, Bordeaux, France
1998; Technical degree in Biochemistry, LEGTA, Rezé, France