Expertise: ROS metabolism and oxidative stress signalling

Amna Mhamdi obtained her Master's degree in Plant Physiology and Biotechnology from Tunis El Manar University (Tunisia) in 2006. In 2007, she started her PhD in the group of Graham Noctor at the Université de Paris Sud (France), studying the role of enzymes involved in glutathione and NADPH reduction in oxidative stress signalling. After obtaining her PhD in 2010, she stayed in the same laboratory and continued as a postdoctoral researcher. From 2016, she joined the oxidative stress signalling group led by Frank Van Breusegem at PSB (Belgium) to study the photorespiratory hydrogen peroxide signalling mechanisms and cysteine oxidation events that occur during plant responses to stress. Since 2023, Amna has been working as a Staff Scientist at VIB-Belgium, Frank Van Breusegem group, with a special focus on understanding the role of redox regulation of transcription complexes and translating key findings observed in Arabidopsis to crop plants. To address research questions in the field of redox and oxidative signalling, Amna is using an integrative approach involving genetics and transcriptomic, proteomic as well as metabolomic profiling.

Lab manager

Robin Pottie graduated in 2017 as Bachelor in Biomedical Laboratory Technology at Odisee Technologycampus Gent. During his bachelor, he worked on a project for Dr. Simon Stael developing genetic and chemical tools to alter the calcium flux in chloroplasts. Afterwards he joined the Van Breusegem lab as a technician and later as lab manager. His main objectives are the support of the lab in general logistics, knowledge transfer, high throughput screens and proof of concept experiments.