Lionel SPINELLI

About

I am a senior research engineer at Aix-Marseille University and co-head of CB2M.

Career

I initially studied pure mathematics at university before moving into theoretical physics, where I obtained a PhD in 1999. This solid grounding in abstract reasoning and quantitative analysis has been a constant asset throughout my career.

After earning my PhD, I spent nine years working in professional software development, primarily focusing on algorithm design and development. This work allowed me to hone my technical expertise while cultivating my creativity and innovative spirit. One of the algorithms I developed resulted in the granting of an international patent, and several projects that required strong differentiation from the competition benefited from my thirst for novelty, optimization, and problem-solving, yielding results highly valued by both clients and colleagues.

With this experience in mind, I chose to return to my initial passion: scientific research. My curiosity and thirst for discovery, particularly in multidisciplinary contexts, remained a constant source of motivation and led me to focus on bioinformatics. This field, characterized by rapid evolution and increasing integration with disciplines such as theoretical physics and mathematics, perfectly matches my interests.

In 2014, I was appointed as a permanent research engineer at Aix-Marseille University (AMU). From 2014 to 2024, I worked jointly in two laboratories: the TAGC (Theories and Approaches of Genomic Complexity), a laboratory specialized in systems biology, and the CIML (Centre d'Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy), dedicated to immunology research. Sharing my time equally between these two environments allowed me to develop expertise at the interface of systems biology and immunology, with a particular focus on biological data analysis, modeling, and computational methods.

Since 2024, I have been fully dedicated to CIML. I am currently leading, with my colleague Sébastien Jaeger, the development of CB2M, the CIML's computational biology hub.

Internal cross-functional missions

Within the CIML, I participate in several responsibilities and missions:

• On the laboratory council, I represent statutory IT staff.
• I am a member of the IT Career unit.
• I lead the working group on platform member authorship.
• I actively participate in internal training activities intended for students and engineers.

Institutional external missions

I am a member of the Professional Equality Parity unit, a unit created at the instigation of the supervisory authorities to help improve gender equality within the CIML.