Bioinformatics PhD student and TACC Trainee Co-Lead, Thomas Renne discusses genetics, open science, and how network engagement informs his approach to neurodevelopmental research.
Thomas Renne is a PhD student in Bioinformatics at the Université de Montréal. His research focuses on understanding how rare genetic variants influence cellular functioning in the brains of autistic individuals. As a recipient of the 2025-2026 TACC Trainee Co-Leadership Award, he contributed to the network’s governance and strategic initiatives related to open science. We spoke with Thomas at the TACC Member Assembly last spring about his research, his approach to open science, and his experience engaging in network governance.
Thomas reflects on participating in the 2025 Member Assembly and how those exchanges inform his research priorities. (Production: Noah Leon)
What sparked your interest in neurodevelopmental research?
Renne: I have always been interested in studying how the human body functions. At first, I focused on genetics. I was very intrigued to understand how this fundamental building block — the blueprint of every living being — could generate so much diversity.
Through my studies, I then discovered that the brain is another central element of our diversity and individuality, and that its functioning, from a mechanistic point of view, is still very little understood. I therefore wanted to contribute, in my own way, to the exploration of neurodevelopment and to understand whether the neurodiversity we observe is encoded in our neurons — and more specifically, in the genes of those neurons.
What motivates you in your work?
Renne: Day to day, what drives me is constantly discovering new things, observing new results, and carrying out the investigative work necessary to understand those discoveries. I work with a very large amount of data, so my work relies heavily on synthesizing this staggering volume of information. One of the best moments of my day is when I finally find the right way to communicate all that information clearly in a single graph.
What impact do you hope your work will have?
Renne: My work focuses on the study of genetics and, more specifically, on the impact of rare genetic variants on cellular functioning in the brain. I hope that my fundamental research will help identify and create a comprehensive resource on the brain genetics of autistic people.
For example, epilepsy is more common among autistic people than in the general population. Yet we still have limited knowledge about the biological factors that may contribute to this increased likelihood. Strengthening our understanding in this area could support research that better addresses health questions identified as important by autistic people and their families.
How did the TACC Trainee Co-Leadership Award shape your experience?
Renne: TACC honored me by awarding me the Co-Leadership Prize. This award, which comes with the significant responsibility of contributing to the network’s governance, taught me a great deal about the inner workings of such organizations. I was able to take part in managing the network, participating in various scientific committees, and even organizing research conferences.
I learned to take on a more active role within the scientific community, all under the supervision and guidance of individuals who were always there to train me and help me improve. All the skills I acquired during that year will, I am certain, serve me throughout the rest of my career.
This award also gave me the opportunity to become more deeply involved in the network and to actively contribute to this community that bridges research and autistic individuals.
What does open science mean to you? How do you integrate it into your own research?
Renne: For me, open science is one of the fundamental building blocks of academic research. From my perspective, it operates on two levels: toward researchers and toward the general public.
For researchers, it involves sharing our data, methods, and results with the broader academic community in the most open way possible, using the tools available to us. I contribute to the open dissemination of my research by using Git repositories for code, public data repositories to deposit my datasets, and by publishing my results in open-access journals so that research is not hidden behind paywalls. In this context, the TACC Quebec 1,000 Families (Q1K) initiative stands out by making participant registries, raw data, and methodologies publicly available to the entire scientific community.
For the general public, open science relies on communication and knowledge translation to make our discoveries accessible to as many people as possible. TACC is a major asset in this regard, as it brings together researchers and the neurodevelopmental community for whom the research is being conducted. This allows us to share our findings back with the community, while also listening to their needs and priorities, thereby helping to guide and shape our research.
Connect with Thomas
Thomas is open to future collaborations. Learn more about his research via Google Scholar and connect with him via email at thomas.renne@umontreal.ca.
Interested in being a TACC Trainee Co-Leader like Thomas?
Apply now for the 2026-2027 TACC Trainee Co-Leadership Award. The deadline to apply is April 3, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. ET.