Céline Borde is a postdoctoral researcher in microbiology at the Interdisciplinary Research Center in Biology (CIRB), where she studies how bacteria adapt to their environment. During her Ph.D. studies in Lyon under the supervision of Agnès Rodrigue, she initially focused on the mechanisms that enable the bacterium Escherichia coli to detect antibiotics and develop resistance to them. At the same time, she taught at INSA Lyon and Claude Bernard University Lyon 1.
Today, as part of Research Director Olivier Espéli’s team at the CIRB, she is seeking to answer a fundamental question: How do cells manage to rapidly produce the proteins necessary for their survival when a change occurs in their environment? This rapid adaptation requires a local reorganization of their genome’s structure. In collaboration with the IGBMC, her work has revealed the key role of a pair of molecules: RNA polymerase and topoisomerase I. The latter acts as a true “sensor” capable of detecting, in real time, DNA distortions caused by RNA polymerase’s reading of the genome. Topoisomerase I can thus quickly release mechanical constraints on the DNA, ensuring proper transcription and, consequently, the efficient production of proteins.
Alongside her research, Céline is fully committed to science outreach, particularly during the Fête de la Science, and is dedicated to supporting young researchers within the dedicated network of the French Society of Microbiology (SFM).
Céline Borde is the recipient of the 2026 Delheim Award , as nominated by Prof. Jean-Jacques Hublin, Chair of Paleoanthropology .