Yves Brun lab
@brunlabcaulo.bsky.social
We like to look at bacteria do the things they do. Université de Montréal.
Great collaboration with @guo-lab.bsky.social to determine an in situ architectural model of the Tad pilus machine. Be on the lookout soon for a preprint on the same topic by Grant Jensen and @viollierpat.bsky.social. #microsky
November 6, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Great collaboration with @guo-lab.bsky.social to determine an in situ architectural model of the Tad pilus machine. Be on the lookout soon for a preprint on the same topic by Grant Jensen and @viollierpat.bsky.social. #microsky
Light reading to distract me from the news. Yet it is strangely familiar.
September 19, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Light reading to distract me from the news. Yet it is strangely familiar.
Please repost: PhD position with my lab and @weisslab.bsky.social in a great collaboration on bacterial adhesion #microsky. See drive.google.com/file/d/1GJD4...
July 9, 2025 at 5:56 PM
Please repost: PhD position with my lab and @weisslab.bsky.social in a great collaboration on bacterial adhesion #microsky. See drive.google.com/file/d/1GJD4...
As I was saying, happy to be back home! Cheers!
July 5, 2025 at 12:34 AM
As I was saying, happy to be back home! Cheers!
Sabbatical is over! I really enjoyed my time in Marseille for 10 months @lcbofficiel.bsky.social but very happy to be back in Montreal and with my lab. Also, the view from my office 😀
July 4, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Sabbatical is over! I really enjoyed my time in Marseille for 10 months @lcbofficiel.bsky.social but very happy to be back in Montreal and with my lab. Also, the view from my office 😀
Excited to see our automated HT growth/microscopy screening platform coming together. Pictured: the intermediate version to screen 5-10,000/day unattended. Diagrammed is the full platform due next summer after renovations @ 20,000/day and integrated with our colony picker.
July 4, 2025 at 5:22 PM
Excited to see our automated HT growth/microscopy screening platform coming together. Pictured: the intermediate version to screen 5-10,000/day unattended. Diagrammed is the full platform due next summer after renovations @ 20,000/day and integrated with our colony picker.
Excited to be in Grenoble surrounded by mountains to give a seminar today at the IBS where I was on sabbatical 10 years ago.
May 16, 2025 at 5:38 AM
Excited to be in Grenoble surrounded by mountains to give a seminar today at the IBS where I was on sabbatical 10 years ago.
Please repost: Postdoc position in antibiotic discovery in a large multidisciplinary project combining high-throughput approaches, microscopy, AI, and hit-to-lead optimization at @umontreal.ca and @mila-quebec.bsky.social. Apply to ML.Antibiotics@gmail.com. See
lnkd.in/dVVk4N3s. #microsky
lnkd.in/dVVk4N3s. #microsky
March 12, 2025 at 12:36 PM
Please repost: Postdoc position in antibiotic discovery in a large multidisciplinary project combining high-throughput approaches, microscopy, AI, and hit-to-lead optimization at @umontreal.ca and @mila-quebec.bsky.social. Apply to ML.Antibiotics@gmail.com. See
lnkd.in/dVVk4N3s. #microsky
lnkd.in/dVVk4N3s. #microsky
8/10 cpaL mutant cells had a delayed surface sensing response. Furthermore, blocking pilus retraction didn't stimulate holdfast production in the cpaL mutant, suggesting that the surface-sensing pathway is already maximally stimulated in the absence of CpaL.
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
8/10 cpaL mutant cells had a delayed surface sensing response. Furthermore, blocking pilus retraction didn't stimulate holdfast production in the cpaL mutant, suggesting that the surface-sensing pathway is already maximally stimulated in the absence of CpaL.
7/10 In a medium where surface-contact mediated holdfast synthesis does not occur, the cpaL mutant had reduced surface attachment, as seen in a deletion of the pilin gene pilA; and, there was also no stimulation of holdfast synthesis. This suggests CpaL is involved in pilus-mediated surface-sensing.
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
7/10 In a medium where surface-contact mediated holdfast synthesis does not occur, the cpaL mutant had reduced surface attachment, as seen in a deletion of the pilin gene pilA; and, there was also no stimulation of holdfast synthesis. This suggests CpaL is involved in pilus-mediated surface-sensing.
6/10 AF3 predict that CpaL forms a complex with minor pilins CpaJ and CpaK at the pilus tip. However, CpaL functions differently from CpaJ and CpaK. Deleting cpaJ and cpaK resulted in cells lacking pili, reduced surface adhesion, and normal holdfast production. So CpaL is more than a minor pilin.
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
6/10 AF3 predict that CpaL forms a complex with minor pilins CpaJ and CpaK at the pilus tip. However, CpaL functions differently from CpaJ and CpaK. Deleting cpaJ and cpaK resulted in cells lacking pili, reduced surface adhesion, and normal holdfast production. So CpaL is more than a minor pilin.
5/10 CpaL has a pilin-like module fused to a mechanosensing vWA domain. This structure suggests CpaL could be a mechanosensory element at the pilus tip.
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
5/10 CpaL has a pilin-like module fused to a mechanosensing vWA domain. This structure suggests CpaL could be a mechanosensory element at the pilus tip.
4/10 Pili are critical for adhesion, yet, here, we found that deleting cpaL led to reduced piliation but **increased** surface adhesion and holdfast production. This suggests CpaL normally inhibits surface sensing.
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
4/10 Pili are critical for adhesion, yet, here, we found that deleting cpaL led to reduced piliation but **increased** surface adhesion and holdfast production. This suggests CpaL normally inhibits surface sensing.
3/10 We had also showed that binding of bulky PEG5000-mal adducts to the pilus fiber prevents pilus retraction by sterically occluding the entrance of the modified pilus filament into the CpaC secretin pore in the outer membrane, thereby stimulating the surface sensing pathway.
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
3/10 We had also showed that binding of bulky PEG5000-mal adducts to the pilus fiber prevents pilus retraction by sterically occluding the entrance of the modified pilus filament into the CpaC secretin pore in the outer membrane, thereby stimulating the surface sensing pathway.
2/10 We previously showed that C. crescentus uses pili, dynamic appendages, for surface sensing. When pili retraction is perturbed upon surface contact, it triggers synthesis of the holdfast adhesive, which permanently attaches cells to surfaces. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
February 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
2/10 We previously showed that C. crescentus uses pili, dynamic appendages, for surface sensing. When pili retraction is perturbed upon surface contact, it triggers synthesis of the holdfast adhesive, which permanently attaches cells to surfaces. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Here for a seminar this afternoon.
December 6, 2024 at 10:00 AM
Here for a seminar this afternoon.
Now with beer. Unfortunately no Guinness. This beer is what they call an “easy drinking IPA”, which based on the taste must mean “not much flavor”…
December 3, 2024 at 7:51 PM
Now with beer. Unfortunately no Guinness. This beer is what they call an “easy drinking IPA”, which based on the taste must mean “not much flavor”…
Starting to work on my talk at Cambridge tomorrow. No Guinness yet.
December 3, 2024 at 5:17 PM
Starting to work on my talk at Cambridge tomorrow. No Guinness yet.
Working on my talk.
December 2, 2024 at 9:31 PM
Working on my talk.