Sarah Lambert

Sarah Lambert serves as Research Professor and Deputy Director of the Genome Integrity, RNA and Cancer Research Unit (UMR3348) at Institut Curie, where she leads the DNA Recombination, Replication and Genome Stability team. Her work investigates molecular mechanisms preventing replication stress-induced genome instability, with implications for cancer and aging.

Education

• PhD in Molecular and Cellular Genetics, Université Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (2001)
• Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches, Université Paris-Sud XI (2011)

Her research integrates genetics, genomics, and molecular approaches to study how recombination, repair, and chromatin processes maintain genome integrity during DNA replication. Using fission yeast and human cell models, she examines spatial organization of replication stress responses within nuclear architecture, focusing on SUMOylation pathways and epigenetic inheritance.

Recent publications demonstrate her team's expertise in quantitative analysis of heterochromatin regulation and replication fork dynamics, revealing how nuclear periphery components like SUMO ligases and proteasomes resolve stalled replication. This work bridges fundamental mechanisms with cancer-relevant genomic instability.

Scientific Recognition

• ANR Young Investigator Program (2010-2014)
• FRM Label Team (2016-2019)
• Fondation Ligue Label Team (2020-2025)

Dr. Lambert directs an active research laboratory supported by competitive grants and international collaborations. She co-organizes major conferences including the biennial Replication, Recombination, Repair meeting and the international Genome Instability and Human Disease course, while serving on the Paris-Saclay Graduate School council and French Genetics Society board.

Her laboratory pioneers multi-scale approaches to map replication stress responses, combining live-cell imaging with genomic analyses to dissect how cells prevent pathological DNA structures during chromosome duplication.