Jérôme Estaquier

The Regulation of Programmed Cell Death

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AIDS and leishmaniasis are both worldwide plagues. While AIDS is the most deadly pandemic virus in the world, leishmaniasis is a parasitic infection that affects 350 million people in 88 countries, and is almost as deadly as malaria.

Dr. Jérôme Estaquier, Canada Research Chair in the Pathophysiology of Cell Death in Host-Pathogen Interactions, is studying the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the life and death of cells in response to infectious agents. Estaquier specializes in non-human primates. He is exploring molecular and cellular mechanisms in animals as they relate to the defense mechanisms of the host.

Programmed cell death is a physiological process of cell suicide that plays a key role in the development and homeostasis (maintenance of a constant internal environment) of adult tissues. Abnormalities in the regulation of this process lead to aberrant cell survival, and to diseases like cancer. Conversely, premature cell death can lead to neurological or immune deficiencies. Blockage of the programmed cell death process plays an essential role in the persistence or elimination of infectious agents and whether or not diseases such as HIV infection or leishmaniasis develop.

Estaquier is using immunological biochemical and genomic analyses to identify new therapeutic targets to modulate programmed cell death processes and to propose new drug or vaccine strategies for infected individuals.

Estaquier’s research will help define the molecular mechanisms involved in the development of HIV and leishmaniasis, and could lead to new treatments to fight these diseases.