My research interests are focused on the molecular mechanisms underlying the process of mitosis, in particular how cells and nuclei divide to generate cell diversity. Thus, I started my career on a simple question: how do cells change shape during division? To tackle this question, I chose to study the cortical remodelling that occurs during symmetrical divisions using Drosophila cells in culture. This PhD work, done in both the S. Carréno (Canada) and F. Payre (France) labs, led us to understand how regulatory networks drive the successive changes in shape that accompany cell division, and how this is synchronized with chromatid segregation. I then focused on another question related to mitosis: how do stem cells generate cellular diversity? To this end, I joined the lab of C. Cabernard (Switzerland) to study asymmetric stem cell division and cell fate acquisition using an in vivo model system, Drosophila neural stems cells. This first postdoctoral work revealed how the asymmetric cortical expansion (polarity-dependent) and the site of cleavage furrow formation (spindle-dependent) are coupled to regulate the physical asymmetry of cell division. Also, in collaboration with the M. Affolter Lab (Switzerland), I developed genetically-encoded tools based on nanobody-technology to manipulate asymmetric stem cell division and assess the functional consequences on cell fate. Finally, for my second postdoc, I decided to address a central and much less studied part of mitosis: how do nuclei divide? To do so, I chose to join the B. Baum Lab (UK) to explore the process of nuclear envelope remodelling during mitosis, using Drosophila and mammalian model systems. I have now completed a first study on the mechanisms underlying asymmetric nuclear division in neural stem cells and how it contributes to cell fate acquisition (more information available here). This has been a revelation. Indeed, some of the most fundamental questions of eukaryotic biology that remain to be answered are related to nuclear division, making this process so fascinating for me. For example, although the nuclei are the defining feature of eukaryotic cells, it is still unknown why across eukaryotes, cells have developed so many strategies to divide their nucleus (namely closed, semi-closed and open mitosis). My goal is now to investigate the molecular mechanisms at play during mitotic nuclear envelope remodelling, from closed to open mitosis, and how asymmetric nuclear division contributes to cell fate acquisition/diversity.