Dec 13, 2021
From 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM

ContactChristine Matte, Coordonnatrice aux affaires académiques / Academic Affairs Coordinator(514) 987-5529
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Donna Senger

Donna Senger

Inflammation and organ-selective neutrophil recruitment

Donna Senger, PhD 
Associate Professor
Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology
McGill University
Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research

This conference is organized by Jean-François Coté. It is part of the 2021-2022 IRCM conference calendar. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference series will be presented on Zoom.

Zoom Link : https://zoom.us/j/95269762104
ID : 952 6976 2104
Code : 476372

About the conference:
A hallmark feature of inflammation is the orchestrated recruitment of neutrophils from the bloodstream into an inflamed tissue. The classic paradigm for leukocyte recruitment involves the adhesive tethering, rolling and firm adhesion on the activated vasculature wall, a process that involves the timely activation of the integrin and selectin families of adhesion receptors. Although this paradigm holds true for many organs, the selectins and integrins have a minimal role in the lungs and liver. Using an unbiased functional in vivo screen we identified a lung and liver homing peptide that abrogates neutrophil recruitment to these organs. Using biochemical, genetic, and confocal intravital imaging we identified dipeptidase-1 (DPEP1) as the target and established its role as a physical adhesion receptor for neutrophil sequestration. Importantly, genetic ablation or functional peptide blocking of DPEP1 significantly reduces neutrophil recruitment to inflamed pulmonary vasculature in models of Acute Lung Injury, preventing lung injury and mortality. Clinical development of the DPEP1 inhibiting peptide has now advanced and is being evaluated in hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

About Donna Senger:
Dr. Donna Senger is an associate professor in the Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology at McGill University and a senior investigator at the Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, with a track record of taking discoveries from the bench to the clinic. Her recent projects focus on identifying and implementing therapeutics for organ-specific cell recruitment and cancer metastasis, by analyzing the role of inflammatory pathways. These studies have led to the development of patents, the completion of Phase I clinical safety trials, the initiation of a Phase II study in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and numerous publications in highly respected, peer-reviewed journals such as Nature Communications and Cell. Her work is supported by funding from CIHR and the Kids Cancer Care Foundation, as well as an investment from the Canadian Government.

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