Elodie Villa
First author of the study showing that mTORC1 raises production of the methyl donor SAM through MAT2A and boosts m6A mRNA methylation to support protein synthesis and cell growth.
Scientist, Frontier Medicines (per Ben-Sahra lab alumni page) · Postdoctoral fellow, Ben-Sahra Lab, Northwestern University (2018–2022) · PhD, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice (2017)
Portrait: Ben-Sahra Lab, Northwestern University
As a postdoctoral fellow in Issam Ben-Sahra’s lab, Elodie Villa led the work showing that mTORC1 controls how much S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) the cell makes: c-MYC raises MAT2A expression, mTORC1 raises WTAP protein, and the resulting rise in m6A mRNA methylation supports protein synthesis and tumor growth (VIL2021). She was also a co-author on the study showing that ERK2 phosphorylates the purine enzyme PFAS to speed up de novo purine synthesis, a growth input that runs in parallel to mTORC1 (ALI2020).
She earned her PhD at Université Côte d’Azur in Nice in December 2017 and was a postdoc in the Ben-Sahra lab from September 2018 to October 2022. The lab’s alumni page lists her next position as Scientist at Frontier Medicines.
Milestones in the Atlas
A selection, not a full bibliography: only papers that meet the Atlas inclusion criteria.
| Year | Evidence | Study |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | M | ERK2 phosphorylates PFAS to mediate posttranslational control of de novo purine synthesis ALI2020 Co-author: ERK2 phosphorylates PFAS at Thr619 to acutely stimulate de novo purine synthesis. |
| 2021 | M | mTORC1 stimulates cell growth through SAM synthesis and m6A mRNA-dependent control of protein synthesis VIL2021 First author: mTORC1 drives SAM synthesis via c-MYC/MAT2A and raises WTAP, increasing m6A mRNA methylation and protein synthesis. |
Co-authors in the Atlas
People with a profile here who share at least one study with Elodie Villa.
- Brendan P. O'Hara 2 shared studies As lab manager of Issam Ben-Sahra's lab at Northwestern, contributed to its studies of how mTORC1 and ERK control nucleotide synthesis, SAM production and bicarbonate import
- Eunus S. Ali 2 shared studies Showed as a Ben-Sahra-lab postdoc that ERK2 directly activates the purine-synthesis enzyme PFAS, and that mTORC1 increases bicarbonate import through SLC4A7 to fuel nucleotide synthesis. His Kentucky lab studies how growth signals control nucleotide metabolism in cancer
- Issam Ben-Sahra 2 shared studies Showed as a postdoc in Brendan Manning's lab that mTORC1 drives both pyrimidine and purine synthesis, through two different mechanisms. His Northwestern lab has extended this to bicarbonate import, SAM synthesis and ERK control of purine production
- John M. Asara 2 shared studies Mass-spectrometry specialist whose core facility supplied metabolomics and proteomics for several mTOR studies, including measurements of purine, pyrimidine and SAM metabolism downstream of mTORC1.
- Peng Gao 2 shared studies Directs the Northwestern metabolomics core that supplied mass-spectrometry metabolite measurements for three Ben-Sahra lab studies on how mTORC1 and ERK signalling drive nucleotide and SAM synthesis.
- Umakant Sahu 2 shared studies Showed that the building blocks of RNA also tell mitochondria how fast to burn fuel
Every researcher with a profile →
Thank you. Your answer was counted anonymously.
Thank you. That helps us know which pages have been read by someone who knows the work.
Thank you. We will check it and correct the page.