Christian Baron, Université de Montréal

Research

Biochemistry Structural Biology Antibiotic Resistance Bacteriology Cryo-Electron Microscopy Plasmid Conjugation Gene Transfer Lipidomics

Latest papers

Cryo-EM structure of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens T-pilus reveals the importance of positive charges in the lumen.
Structure (London, England : 1993) · 2023 · senior author
New Insights Into Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans Sulfur Metabolism Through Coupled Gene Expression, Solution Chemistry, Microscopy, and Spectroscopy Analyses
Frontiers in Microbiology · 2020
Fragment-based screening identifies inhibitors of ATPase activity and of hexamer formation of Cagα from the Helicobacter pylori type IV secretion system.
Scientific reports · 2019 · senior author

All 11 publications

Latest funding

Structural and functional characterization of type IV secretion system pili
CIHR · 2021 · Nominated PI
$100,000
Structural and chemical biology studies of the TraE-TraD complex at the core of the plasmid pKM101 type IV secretion system
CIHR · 2017 · Nominated PI
$100,000
A versatile broad range microscale thermophoresis apparatus for the measurement of biomolecular interactions
NSERC · 2017 · Co-investigator
$144,844

All 13 grants and awards

11 publications.

01

Cryo-EM structure of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens T-pilus reveals the importance of positive charges in the lumen.

Amro J, Black C, Jemouai Z, Rooney N, Daneault C, Zeytuni N, Ruiz M, Bui KH, Baron C

Structure (London, England : 1993)2023Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2022.11.007 PMID: 36513067

02

New Insights Into Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans Sulfur Metabolism Through Coupled Gene Expression, Solution Chemistry, Microscopy, and Spectroscopy Analyses

Camacho D, Frazao R, Fouillen A, Nanci A, Lang BF, Apte SC, Baron C, Warren LA

Frontiers in Microbiology202053 citationsOpen Access

DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00411 PMID: W3011604184

03

Fragment-based screening identifies inhibitors of ATPase activity and of hexamer formation of Cagα from the Helicobacter pylori type IV secretion system.

Arya T, Oudouhou F, Casu B, Bessette B, Sygusch J, Baron C

Scientific reports2019Senior author

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42876-6 PMID: 31019200

04

Interaction via the N terminus of the type IV secretion system (T4SS) protein VirB6 with VirB10 is required for VirB2 and VirB5 incorporation into T-pili and for T4SS function.

Mary C, Fouillen A, Bessette B, Nanci A, Baron C

The Journal of biological chemistry2018Senior author

DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.002751 PMID: 29976757

05

VirB8 homolog TraE from plasmid pKM101 forms a hexameric ring structure and interacts with the VirB6 homolog TraD.

Casu B, Mary C, Sverzhinsky A, Fouillen A, Nanci A, Baron C

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2018Senior author

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1802501115 PMID: 29784815

06

Fragment-based screening identifies novel targets for inhibitors of conjugative transfer of antimicrobial resistance by plasmid pKM101.

Casu B, Arya T, Bessette B, Baron C

Scientific reports2017Senior author

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-14953-1 PMID: 29097752

07

Type IV Secretion in Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Development of Specific Inhibitors.

Sharifahmadian M, Baron C

Current topics in microbiology and immunology2017Senior author

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-75241-9_7 PMID: 29536359

08

Cag-delta (Cag3) protein from the Helicobacter pylori 26695 cag type IV secretion system forms ring-like supramolecular assemblies.

Smart J, Fouillen A, Casu B, Nanci A, Baron C

FEMS microbiology letters2017Senior author

DOI: 10.1093/femsle/fnw280 PMID: 27986823

09

Structural Analysis and Inhibition of TraE from the pKM101 Type IV Secretion System.

Casu B, Smart J, Hancock MA, Smith M, Sygusch J, Baron C

The Journal of biological chemistry2016Senior author

DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m116.753327 PMID: 27634044

10

VirB6 and VirB10 from the Brucella type IV secretion system interact via the N-terminal periplasmic domain of VirB6.

Villamil Giraldo AM, Mary C, Sivanesan D, Baron C

FEBS letters2015Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.febslet.2015.05.051 PMID: 26071378

Structural and functional characterization of type IV secretion system pili

Nominated PICIHR2021Project Grant - Priority Announcement: Infection and Immunity

Principal investigators: Baron, Christian; Bui, Khanh Huy

Keywords: Antibiotic Resistance; Bacteriology; Biochemistry; Cryo-Electron Microscopy; Gene Transfer; Lipidomics; Pili; Plasmid Conjugation; Structural Biology; Type Iv Secretion System

$100,000

Structural and chemical biology studies of the TraE-TraD complex at the core of the plasmid pKM101 type IV secretion system

Nominated PICIHR2017Project Grant

Principal investigators: Baron, Christian

Keywords: Antibiotic Resistance; Bacteriology; Biochemistry; Chemical Biology; Cryo-Electron Microscopy; Plasmid Conjugation; Secretion System; Structural Biology; Super-Resolution Microscopy; X-Ray Crystallography

$100,000

A versatile broad range microscale thermophoresis apparatus for the measurement of biomolecular interactions

Co-investigatorNSERC2017Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Najmanovich, Rafael

$144,844

Correlative light and electron microscopy under cryogenic conditions

Co-investigatorNSERC2017Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Tocheva, Elitza

$143,000

Incorporation of selenocysteine into proteins

Principal investigatorNSERC2017Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Baron, Christian

$168,000

Robot for lipidic cubic phase (LCP) crystallization of membrane proteins

Principal investigatorNSERC2015Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

Principal investigators: Baron, Christian

$143,943

NSERC CREATE Mine de Savoir/Mine of Knowledge

Co-investigatorNSERC2013Collaborative Research and Training Experience

Principal investigators: Amyot, Marc

$1,650,000

Dynamic interactions of the type IV secretion system assembly factor VirB8

Nominated PICIHR2012Operating Grant

Principal investigators: Baron, Christian

Keywords: Bacterial Virulence; Biochemistry; Medicinal Chemistry; Molecular Docking; Novel Alternative To Antibiotics; Protein-Protein Interactions; Secretion Systems; Small-Molecule Inhibitors; Structural Biology; Structure-Activity Relationship Program

$909,850

Low-volume ITC for investigating biomolecular interactions

Co-investigatorNSERC2012Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

Principal investigators: Omichinski, James

$130,099

A molecular imager for Quantitative biochemistry

Co-investigatorNSERC2011Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

Principal investigators: Legault, Pascale

$140,400

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 and Molecular Medicine
Stomatology
Earth, Environment & Society
Nutrition
Anatomy and Biology

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

Antonio Nanci

Stomatology

2 shared papers, latest 2020

Matthieu Ruiz

Nutrition

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Natalie Zeytuni

Anatomy and Biology

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Lesley A Warren

Earth, Environment & Society

1 shared papers, latest 2020

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 2021

Subject: Prospective PhD student: Biochemistry Dear Professor Baron, 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 "Cryo-EM structure of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens T-pilus reveals the importance of positive charges in the lumen." (2023), 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 "Structural and functional characterization of type IV secretion system pili" (2021), 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]

Christian Baron

Research

Latest papers

Latest funding

Cryo-EM structure of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens T-pilus reveals the importance of positive charges in the lumen.

New Insights Into Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans Sulfur Metabolism Through Coupled Gene Expression, Solution Chemistry, Microscopy, and Spectroscopy Analyses

Fragment-based screening identifies inhibitors of ATPase activity and of hexamer formation of Cag&#x3b1; from the Helicobacter pylori type IV secretion system.

Interaction via the N terminus of the type IV secretion system (T4SS) protein VirB6 with VirB10 is required for VirB2 and VirB5 incorporation into T-pili and for T4SS function.

VirB8 homolog TraE from plasmid pKM101 forms a hexameric ring structure and interacts with the VirB6 homolog TraD.

Fragment-based screening identifies novel targets for inhibitors of conjugative transfer of antimicrobial resistance by plasmid pKM101.

Type IV Secretion in Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Development of Specific Inhibitors.

Cag-delta (Cag3) protein from the Helicobacter pylori 26695 cag type IV secretion system forms ring-like supramolecular assemblies.

Structural Analysis and Inhibition of TraE from the pKM101 Type IV Secretion System.

VirB6 and VirB10 from the Brucella type IV secretion system interact via the N-terminal periplasmic domain of VirB6.

Structural and functional characterization of type IV secretion system pili

Structural and chemical biology studies of the TraE-TraD complex at the core of the plasmid pKM101 type IV secretion system

A versatile broad range microscale thermophoresis apparatus for the measurement of biomolecular interactions

Correlative light and electron microscopy under cryogenic conditions

Incorporation of selenocysteine into proteins

Robot for lipidic cubic phase (LCP) crystallization of membrane proteins

NSERC CREATE Mine de Savoir/Mine of Knowledge

Dynamic interactions of the type IV secretion system assembly factor VirB8

Low-volume ITC for investigating biomolecular interactions

A molecular imager for Quantitative biochemistry

Frequent collaborators

Antonio Nanci

Matthieu Ruiz

Natalie Zeytuni

Lesley A Warren

Fragment-based screening identifies inhibitors of ATPase activity and of hexamer formation of Cagα from the Helicobacter pylori type IV secretion system.