OUR TEAM

DR JULIEN VERMOT

Principal Investigator
Professor in Developmental Biomechanochemical Signalling

Julien leads the biomechanics and signalling lab focusing on the understanding on the impact of mechanical stresses during morphogenetic and regenerative processes.

Julien obtained his PhD in developmental biology from the University of Strasbourg in 2003, where he worked on the role of retinoic acid during embryonic development. He then worked as a visiting scientist the Stowers Institute for Biomedical Research in Kansas City, USA, followed by a post-doctoral position at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena where he developed new tools to study the role of mechanical forces during development. He was Research Director at the French INSERM before joining the Department of Bioengineering at Imperial College London in 2019.

For his research, he has won numerous prizes, including the Career Development Award from the HFSP and the ERC Consolidator Grant. He became EMBO member in 2023.

DR CHRISTINA VAGENA-PANTOULA

Research Associate

Christina is a Research Associate in the Vermot lab, where she investigates the role of mechanical forces in heart development. Her work focuses on understanding how mechanotransduction pathways shape cardiac valve formation in zebrafish, advancing our knowledge of early organogenesis. Christina received her PhD in Bioengineering from Imperial College London under the supervision of Prof. Julien Vermot, following a Master’s degree in Translational Research in Biomedicine and a Bachelor’s in Molecular Biology and Genetics from the Democritus University of Thrace in Greece.

In addition to her research, Christina is an active member of the UK Zebrafish Research Network (formerly known as the London Zebrafish Club), where she serves on the committee. Her involvement reflects her commitment to fostering scientific collaboration across London, the UK, and Europe, as well as her dedication to promoting public engagement with science.

DR ALEXIA PIGEOT

Research Associate

Alexia is a postdoc in the Vermot lab. Using zebrafish as model organism, she explores how mechanical forces due to heartbeat and blood flow impacts valve morphogenesis. Alexia uses a variety of imaging and genomics techniques to uncover the impacts of mechanical cues on nuclei and chromatin of endocardial cells.

Alexia obtained a PhD in Life Science from the University of Montpellier (France) during which she focused on the regulation of chromatin and gene expression by mechanical cues in human cell cultures.

ANTOINE SANCHEZ

Research Assistant

Antoine is a research assistant in the Vermot lab, waiting to pass his viva end of November. Until August, he was a PhD student working in the Vermot lab under the joint supervision of Prof. Anil Anthony Bharath and Dr. Julien Vermot. His research revolves around the processing of 3D high resolution data volumes to enhance and simplify the process of tissue analysis. He uses deep learning segmentation approaches as well as traditional image processing algorithms to extract, quantify and qualify various biological structures.

Antoine studied general engineering at Grenoble INP in France, before focusing on signal and image processing as well as information and communication, obtaining a Master’s degree in these fields.

SULAIMAAN LIM

PhD Student

Sulaimaan is a third-year biophysics PhD student working in the Vermot lab with joint supervision from Dr Julien Vermot and Dr Chiu Fan Lee. His research is focused on studying the self-organisation of Endocardial cells during zebrafish heart looping.

For his undergrad, Sulaimaan studied Natural Sciences at Fitzwilliam College Cambridge, taking Physics in his master’s year with a particular focus on biophysics and statistical mechanics.

ZHONGYI HUANG

PhD Student

Zhongyi is a second-year PhD student jointly supervised by Prof. Julien Vermot and Dr. Choon Hwai Yap. His research focuses on employing microinjection to precisely modulate osmotic potential within the zebrafish heart chambers, investigating how the endocardium at the atrioventricular canal responds to these osmotic perturbations and regulates its volume, which seeks to investigate the mechanobiological pathways through which cell volume adapts to osmotic fluctuations.

Zhongyi completed his undergraduate studies in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Nottingham. He subsequently earned a Master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from Imperial College London.

MIA YAP

PhD Student

Mia is a first-year PhD student in the Vermot lab investigating the cell-intrinsic mechanisms of myocardial cells during cardiogenesis. Her research will integrate different imaging techniques, physical stimuli and cell models to explore the possibility of cell control, specifically during cardiac looping in zebrafish.

Mia attained her integrated master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering at Imperial College London, where she focused on biomechanics

SHUYI FENG

PhD Student

Shuyi is a fourth-year PhD student majoring in Clinical Medicine (cardiothoracic surgery), currently a visiting student at the Vermot Lab. Her research examines the hemodynamics of heart valves, using imaging and biological techniques to study how mechanical forces regulate valve formation during zebrafish heart development.

Shuyi completed her undergraduate studies in Clinical Medicine at Zhejiang University and is pursuing her PhD at Peking Union Medical College, China. Her doctoral research focuses on clinical studies of mitral regurgitation and on the impact of valvular heart disease on left ventricular hemodynamics.

VERMOT LAB ALUMNI

Anne-Laure Duchemin, Lecturer, University of Strasbourg, France

Hajime Fukui, Associate Professor Tokushima University, Japan

Hélène Vignes, Senior Scientist, University of Strasbourg, France (PhD Prize of Strasbourg University)

Pedro Campinho, Microscopy and Imaging Specialist, Champalimaud Centre, Lisbon, Portugal

Rita Rua Ferreira, Pre-Award Funding Manager, NOVA Medical School, Lisbon, Portugal (PhD Prize of Strasbourg University)

Francesco Boselli, Lecturer, Durham University, UK

Jacky Goetz, Group Leader, University of Strasbourg, France

Emily Steed, Research Support Officer, EMBL EBI Cambridge, UK

Caroline Ramspacher, Project leader Innovation & startupership Partner, Eurosante Lille, France

Emilie Heckel, Senior R&D Scientist, Eli Health, Montreal, Canada

Halina Anton, Lecturer, University of Strasbourg, France

Marina Peralta, Senior Scientist, University of Strasbourg, France

Emmanuelle Steib, Advanced Workflow Specialist in Confocal microscopy, Leica Microsystem UK

Renee Wei-yan Chow, Group leader, ARM Institute, Monash University, Australia (2023)