Research

Axis 1: Development and regeneration of the auditory portion of the inner ear

The mammalian inner ear is an unusually complex organ comprising the vestibule, which is implicated in balance and equilibrium, and the coiled cochlea, containing the auditory machinery necessary for hearing, including the organ of Corti, the spiral ganglion, and the stria vascularis. Deafness commonly results from a lesion of the sensory cells of the organ of Corti and/or the neurons of the auditory part of the inner ear. Currently, no treatment is designed to halt or reverse the progression of hearing loss. Therefore, our primary goal is to better understand how the development of the cochlea is regulated. Indeed, the same molecules that control organogenesis during development are often involved or activated in response to tissue regeneration after trauma, including in the inner ear. In parallel, the prevention of auditory sensory loss is also investigated.

Different Approaches:

• Understanding mechanisms involved in hereditary hearing loss using human 3D organoids
• Pharmacological treatment of hearing loss (preventive or curative)
• New formulations for local administration

Axis 2: Unravelling molecular mechanisms that regulate adult neurogenesis and neuronal death 

Due to increased life expectancies, age-related neurological disorders, including stroke and neurodegenerative diseases, are becoming a significant healthcare problem in developed countries. Since these disorders are characterized by neuronal loss, an ideal therapeutic approach would combine 1) the prevention or delay of neuronal death and 2) the replacement of the lost neurons by differentiating endogenous or transplanted neural precursor cells (NPCs) into neurons. Toward this purpose, the goal of our research is to understand better the molecular mechanisms that regulate the generation of neurons and neuronal cell death, the first step towards the identification of new molecular targets to improve brain recovery following stroke or neurodegenerative diseases

Our research is focused on characterizing the role of cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) in the endogenous production of neurons in the adult brain (adult neurogenesis) and neuronal death.