Position: MSc. Student – Biophotonics, Université Laval

Academia: BSc – Physics, Université Laval

Advisors: Daniel Côté, Yves DeKoninck

Research interests: In vivo imaging, Blood-brain barrier disruption, Multiple sclerosis/EAE

Email: emilie.chamma.1@ulaval.ca

 

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease that causes inflammation and demyelination of the central nervous system. The lesions are the result of a high number of immune cells, leukocytes, that crossed the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to get into the central nervous system. To develop better therapies, it is essential to understand the early stages of the infiltration, in particular the proteins and molecular events involved in the blood-brain barrier disruption.

Blood vessel (yellow) showing leakage of large molecules (red) and small molecules (green) at the early stages of the disease in mice
Blood vessel (yellow) showing leakage of large molecules (red) and small molecules (green) at the early stages of the disease in mice

 

We use optical microscopy (2-photon) to image in vivo  the blood-brain barrier breakdown in the MS animal model experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Using different permeability markers, we study the progression of the disease and correlate it to the BBB disruption, cellular infiltration and demyelination.