Alexandre Blais, University of Ottawa

Research

Read how they describe their research on their University of Ottawa profile.

Bioinformatics Analyses Chromatin Structure Gene Expression Profiling Gene Transcription Genomics Analyses By High-Throughput Sequencing Muscle Stem Cells Skeletal Muscle Regeneration Transcrition Factors

Latest papers

The role of ATF4 in neurons under mitochondrial stress.
NAR genomics and bioinformatics · 2026
Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors define a potent effector program in human γδ T cells.
JCI insight · 2026
Structure of the nucleosome-bound human BCL7A.
Nucleic acids research · 2025

All 43 publications

Latest funding

Exploring the education of gd T cells to foster their therapeutic potential
CIHR · 2024 · Co-investigator
$100,000
Biochemical and structural studies of poly-TPR containing proteins involved in epigenetic signalling.
CIHR · 2024 · Co-investigator
$669,376
Gene regulatory network controlling muscle stem cell function
CIHR · 2022 · Nominated PI
$856,800

All 17 grants and awards

43 publications.

01

The role of ATF4 in neurons under mitochondrial stress.

Bilen M, Liu Y, Chakroun I, Iqbal MA, Fong BC, Chen J, Paul S, Blais A, Slack RS

NAR genomics and bioinformatics2026

DOI: 10.1093/nargab/lqag069 PMID: 42383245

02

Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors define a potent effector program in human γδ T cells.

Razmi M, Almasi Y, Larrivée M, Angel JB, Blais A, Djaoud Z

JCI insight2026

DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.201160 PMID: 42044172

03

Structure of the nucleosome-bound human BCL7A.

Martin F, Kazrani AA, Lafouge J, Diaz-Jimenez DM, Siebert S, Fabbro-Burtschell L, Maillard E, Lapouge K, Mertens HDT, Sauter C, Leitner A, Ochsenbein F, Blais A, Bergamin E

Nucleic acids research2025

DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkaf273 PMID: 40207634

04

Regulation of Zfp36 by ISGF3 and MK2 restricts the expression of inflammatory cytokines during necroptosis stimulation.

Yadav S, El Hamra R, Alturki NA, Ariana A, Bhan A, Hurley K, Gaestel M, Blackshear PJ, Blais A, Sad S

Cell death & disease2024

DOI: 10.1038/s41419-024-06964-4 PMID: 39117638

05

Gestational age at birth influences protein and RNA content in human milk extracellular vesicles.

Vahkal B, Altosaar I, Tremblay E, Gagné D, Hüttman N, Minic Z, Côté M, Blais A, Beaulieu JF, Ferretti E

Journal of extracellular biology2024

DOI: 10.1002/jex2.128 PMID: 38938674

06

Choline metabolism underpins macrophage IL-4 polarization and RELMα up-regulation in helminth infection.

Ghorbani P, Kim SY, Smith TKT, Minarrieta L, Robert-Gostlin V, Kilgour MK, Ilijevska M, Alecu I, Snider SA, Margison KD, Nunes JRC, Woo D, Pember C, O'Dwyer C, Ouellette J, Kotchetkov P, St-Pierre J, Bennett SAL, Lacoste B, Blais A, Nair MG, Fullerton MD

PLoS pathogens2023

DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011658 PMID: 37747879

07

ATF2 orchestrates macrophage differentiation and activation to promote antibacterial responses.

Rajabalee N, Siushansian H, Weerapura M, Berton S, Berbatovci F, Hooks B, Geoffrion M, Yang D, Harper ME, Rayner K, Blais A, Sun J

Journal of leukocyte biology2023

DOI: 10.1093/jleuko/qiad076 PMID: 37403209

08

Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection triggers epigenetic changes that are enriched in a type I IFN signature.

Madden K, El Hamra R, Berton S, Felker J, Alvarez GG, Blais A, Sun J

microLife2023

DOI: 10.1093/femsml/uqad006 PMID: 36820061

09

Foxo3a tempers excessive glutaminolysis in activated T cells to prevent fatal gut inflammation in the murine IL-10-/- model of colitis.

Hajjar S, Nathan N, Joseph J, Mottawea W, Ariana A, Pyatibrat S, Harper ME, Alain T, Blais A, Russell RC, Sad S

Cell death and differentiation2022

DOI: 10.1038/s41418-021-00876-y PMID: 34588632

10

Six1 promotes skeletal muscle thyroid hormone response through regulation of the MCT10 transporter.

Girgis J, Yang D, Chakroun I, Liu Y, Blais A

Skeletal muscle2021Senior author

DOI: 10.1186/s13395-021-00281-6 PMID: 34809717

Exploring the education of gd T cells to foster their therapeutic potential

Co-investigatorCIHR2024Project Grant - Priority Announcement: Infection and Immunity

Principal investigators: Djaoud, Zakia

Keywords: Cancer; Chimeric Antigen Receptor (Car); Epigenetics; Flow Cytometry; Human Leukocyte Antigen Class I (Hla Class I); Immunology; Innate Lymphocytes; Killer Cell Immunoglobulin Like Receptors (Kirs); T Cell Receptors (Tcrs); ¿D T Cells

$100,000

Biochemical and structural studies of poly-TPR containing proteins involved in epigenetic signalling.

Co-investigatorCIHR2024Project Grant

Principal investigators: Couture, Jean-François

Keywords: Epigenetics; Histone

$669,376

Gene regulatory network controlling muscle stem cell function

Nominated PICIHR2022Project Grant

Principal investigators: Blais, Alexandre

Keywords: Bioinformatics Analyses; Chromatin Structure; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Transcription; Genomics Analyses By High-Throughput Sequencing; Muscle Stem Cells; Skeletal Muscle Regeneration; Transcrition Factors

$856,800

FoxO3a acts as a key checkpoint that regulates inflammation in the gut

Co-investigatorCIHR2019Project Grant

Principal investigators: Sad, Subash

Keywords: Gut; Inflammatioin; Metabolism; Microbiome

$768,826

Investigating the role of Six family transcription factors in skeletal muscle

SupervisorCIHR2019Undergraduate: Summer Studentship Award - Institute Community Support

Principal investigators: Labonté, Caleb

Keywords: Chromatin Structure; Muscle Stem Cells; Myoblast Differentiation; Skeletal Muscle; Transcription Factors

$5,000

Investigating determinants of thyroid hormone responsiveness in skeletal muscle

SupervisorCIHR2018Undergraduate: Summer Studentship Award - Institute Community Support

Principal investigators: Labonté, Caleb

Keywords: Fast-Twitch; Skeletal Muscle; Slow-Twitch; Thyroid Hormones; Transcription Factors

$5,000

Molecular basis of PPM1A controlled macrophage apoptosis in tuberculosis

Co-investigatorCIHR2018Project Grant

Principal investigators: Sun, Jim

Keywords: Cell Death; Cell Signaling Pathways; Host-Directed Therapy; Innate Immune Response To Tuberculosis; Macrophage Anti-Bacterial Mechanisms; Macrophage Apoptosis; Mycobacterium Tuberculosis; Ppm1a

$833,850

Computational approach to design peptides improving muscle function

SupervisorCIHR2017Undergraduate: Summer Studentship Award - Institute Community Support

Principal investigators: Yang, Yaqing

Keywords: Computational Biology; In Silico Protein Design; Protein-Protein Interactions; Six1 Transcription Factor; Skeletal Muscle

$5,000

Arginine methylation and the cell cycle

Principal investigatorNSERC2016Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Blais, Alexandre

$264,000

Role of XAF1 and MAP kinase-activated protein kinase-2 in necrosome signaling

Co-investigatorCIHR2016Project Grant

Principal investigators: Sad, Subash

Keywords: Bacterial Infections; Cell Death; Immune Response; Innate Immunitiy

$835,570

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

Frequent collaborators

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology
Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Department of Medicine
Pediatrics
Surgery
Biology
Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology
Other

Co-authors at University of Ottawa, colored by department. Thicker lines mean more shared papers; select anyone to open their profile and their own map.

Ilya Ioshikhes

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

3 shared papers, latest 2017

Marjorie Brand

Department of Medicine

3 shared papers, latest 2021

Rashmi Kothary

Cellular and Molecular Medicine

3 shared papers, latest 2013

Subash Sad

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

3 shared papers, latest 2024

Jim Sun

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

2 shared papers, latest 2023

Mary-Ellen Harper

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

2 shared papers, latest 2023

Tommy Alain

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2022

Julie St-Pierre

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Qiao Li

Cellular and Molecular Medicine

1 shared papers, latest 2017

Lisheng Wang

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2012

Zakia Djaoud

Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2026

Neena Lala-Tabbert

Faculty

1 shared papers, latest 2017

Emanuela Ferretti

Pediatrics

1 shared papers, latest 2024

Illimar Altosaar

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2024

Lakshmi Krishnan

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2016

Nadine Wiper Bergeron

Cellular and Molecular Medicine

1 shared papers, latest 2017

Baptiste Lacoste

Cellular and Molecular Medicine

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Daniel Figeys

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2010

Kunal Bhanot

Surgery

1 shared papers, latest 2012

Marc Ekker

Biology

1 shared papers, latest 2012

Zemin Yao

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2010

Katey Rayner

Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Write to this professor

A short, specific email works best. This draft uses one of their recent papers; replace the parts in brackets with your own details before sending.

Applying for

Paper to mentionMention their CIHR grant from 2022

Subject: Prospective PhD student: Bioinformatics Analyses Dear Professor Blais, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "The role of ATF4 in neurons under mitochondrial stress." (2026), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] I also saw your CIHR-funded project "Gene regulatory network controlling muscle stem cell function" (2022), and I would be glad to contribute to work in that direction. Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]

Alexandre Blais

Research

Latest papers

Latest funding

The role of ATF4 in neurons under mitochondrial stress.

Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors define a potent effector program in human &#x3b3;&#x3b4; T cells.

Structure of the nucleosome-bound human BCL7A.

Regulation of Zfp36 by ISGF3 and MK2 restricts the expression of inflammatory cytokines during necroptosis stimulation.

Gestational age at birth influences protein and RNA content in human milk extracellular vesicles.

Choline metabolism underpins macrophage IL-4 polarization and RELM&#x3b1; up-regulation in helminth infection.

ATF2 orchestrates macrophage differentiation and activation to promote antibacterial responses.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection triggers epigenetic changes that are enriched in a type I IFN signature.

Foxo3a tempers excessive glutaminolysis in activated T cells to prevent fatal gut inflammation in the murine IL-10-/- model of colitis.

Six1 promotes skeletal muscle thyroid hormone response through regulation of the MCT10 transporter.

Arginine methylation and the cell cycle

Frequent collaborators

Ilya Ioshikhes

Marjorie Brand

Rashmi Kothary

Subash Sad

Jim Sun

Mary-Ellen Harper

Tommy Alain

Julie St-Pierre

Qiao Li

Lisheng Wang

Zakia Djaoud

Neena Lala-Tabbert

Emanuela Ferretti

Illimar Altosaar

Lakshmi Krishnan

Nadine Wiper Bergeron

Baptiste Lacoste

Daniel Figeys

Kunal Bhanot

Marc Ekker

Zemin Yao

Katey Rayner

Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors define a potent effector program in human γδ T cells.

Choline metabolism underpins macrophage IL-4 polarization and RELMα up-regulation in helminth infection.