Venue: BBS
2 Rue Dr Hoffmann Martinot
Aurélie De Rus Jacquet
Axe Neurosciences, CHUL
Professeure adjointe
Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences
Faculté de médecine, Université Laval
Invited by sophie Layé (NutriNeuro)
In the frame of the international research network Food4BrainHealth
Title
Leveraging tissue engineering approaches to elucidate the health benefits of natural products and mitigate neurodegenerative diseases.
Abstract
At the core of human existence lies a profound and intricate relationship with the plant world. Throughout our lives, we will rely on plants to breathe, eat, and heal, and Indigenous teachings across the globe recognize sacred properties to culturally symbolic medicinal plants. During this talk, we will explore the traditional and contemporary uses of herbal remedies to promote healthy aging and attenuate symptoms of neurodegenerative disorders. We will discuss conceptual and methodological approaches used in our laboratory to understand the biological mechanisms underlying the pro-health benefits of plant-based natural products. More specifically, our interest lies in the ability of these molecules to promote defense mechanisms in the aging brain by targeting non-neuronal brain cells, as these cell types regulate neuroinflammatory and neurotrophic processes involved in neuron survival. Experimental approaches to address these complex questions rely on cutting-edge technologies, such as induced pluripotent stem cells and the generation of 3D microfluidic and organoids-based modeling platforms. These exciting technologies – and others – hold promises to create more complex disease models that recapitulate the cytoarchitecture and dynamic cell-cell interactions characteristic of the human brain. Applying these tools to natural health product research in aging and neurodegenerative disorders has the potential to facilitate new discoveries and inform on their safety, efficacy and mechanisms of action.
Bio
Aurélie de Rus Jacquet est chercheuse dans l’axe Neurosciences du Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, et professeure adjointe au département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences de la Faculté de Médecine de l’Université Laval. Elle est neurobiologiste et ethnopharmacologue, spécialisée dans l’étude de la maladie de Parkinson. Ses recherches l’ont amenée à documenter l’utilisation des pharmacopées traditionnelle pour soigner la maladie de Parkinson et à tester leurs effets bénéfiques des modèles cellulaires de la maladie. Elle a découvert des extraits botaniques qui atténue la perte des neurones dopaminergiques et potentialise le rôle neuroprotecteur des astrocytes. À l’aide de cellules souches pluripotentes induites humaines, elle met en place de nouveaux modèles microfluidiques pour étudier le rôle des cellules gliales et de la barrière hémato-encéphalique dans l’apparition et la progression de la maladie, et orienter les stratégies de criblage de nouvelles phytomolécules thérapeutiques.