Kevin Saitoski
Associate Professor
Kevin Saitoski has developed a strong academic and research background in cell biology, with a particular focus on lipoprotein metabolism and its role in human diseases.
He first obtained a Master’s degree in Cell Biology from the University of Lille, followed by a Master’s degree in Drug Sciences at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Lille. During his two Master’s-level research trainings, he investigated lipid metabolism in the context of Parkinson’s disease (INSERM U837, JPArc) and diabetes (INSERM U1190, EGID). He then pursued a PhD in Cell Biology at the Institute Cochin under the supervision of Raphael Scharfmann (INSERM U1016). His doctoral work focused on the study of the PCSK9 protein, a key regulator of lipoprotein receptors expression, in human pancreatic beta cells. This work was conducted in collaboration with AstraZeneca. Using combined transcriptomic, proteomic, and secretome analyses, this work enabled the identification of new PCSK9 targets in pancreatic beta cells.
After completing his PhD, he undertook a short postdoctoral position in the same lab, studying lipoprotein receptors expression in mice alpha, beta, and delta pancreatic cells. He then joined the Paris Cardiovascular Research Center (PARCC) at Georges Pompidou European Hospital (HEGP, INSERM U970) as a postdoctoral researcher under the supervision of Pierre-Louis Tharaux, in collaboration with Alentis Therapeutics. During this period, he investigated the role of parietal epithelial cells (PECs) in crescentic glomerulonephritis and focal segmental glomerulonephritis, with a special focus no claudin-1 protein. He developed both in vitro and in vivo experimental models to study PECs and implemented advanced approaches such as spatial transcriptomics, as well as single-cell and single-nucleus transcriptomic analyses in mouse and human kidney samples.
In September 2024, he was appointed Associate Professor in Sorbonne Paris North university and integrated SIMHEL LAB (UMR INSERM 1349). His current research focuses on lipoprotein metabolism in the context of chronic lymphocytic leukemia, with a particular emphasis on evaluating lipoproteins and their receptors as prognostic and predictive biomarkers, and exploring their potential as therapeutic targets in this disease.