Title:   
Associate Research Professor

Institute:
Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal

Department:  
Molecular Biology of Neural Development

Province:
Quebec

Training:
Beckman Senior Research Fellow, Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, California, USA 
Postdoctoral Felloship, Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, California, USA
PhD Experimental Medicine, Department of Medicine, McGill University , Montreal, Quebec, Canada
BSc Biochemistry, Department of Biochemistry, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Research interests:
Brain tumors
Nervous system development

Recognitions:
2010 Pierre Bois Excellence Award
2010 Chercheur-Boursier of the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ)
2005 Peter Lougheed-CIHR New Investigator Award, Peter Lougheed Medical Research Foundation and Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Research Projects

Project title:
The detection and identification of medulloblastoma

Funding period:  
2010-2012

Program:
Operating Grant (Basic Research)

Summary:
Medulloblastoma is a very aggressive childhood cerebellum cancer and the most common brain tumor in children. One of the major causes of medulloblastoma is aberrant activation of the Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway. Our lab recently identified a novel marker which is a target of the Shh signaling pathway and which is expressed by medulloblastoma tumors. We aim to test whether this marker can be used to detect medulloblastoma at an early stage. Furthermore, we will also test whether this marker can be used to identify patients with tumors that result from Shh pathway misregulation, thus informing us of which patients will respond to drugs that specifically target Shh signaling. Developing markers for medulloblastoma will facilitate the detection and improve the treatment of medulloblastoma and possibly other cancers that result from aberrant Shh signaling.