[960] Cell Therapy & Musculoskeletal Disorders

Our research group is involved in basic and translational research in the field of osteoarthritis (OA), led by Pr Didier Hannouche, and in the field of skeletal muscle stem cells (MuSC), led by Dr Thomas Laumonier.

In OA, articular cartilage follows a progressive degeneration, where low-grade inflammation could play a pivotal role through an oxidative stress-dependent mechanism and exposure to reactive oxygen species (ROS). We hypothesize that ROS production by chondrocytes through NADPH isoform 4 (NOX4), plays a noxious role in OA pathogenesis. For this purpose, we investigate the implication of NOX4 in the pathophysiology of OA, both in vivo and in vitro.

The laboratory has also a long experience in the isolation, culture, characterization, and transplantation of human MuSC. The research work focuses mainly on the development of cell therapy strategies in the treatment of skeletal muscle disorders, including myopathies. We demonstrated that human muscle reserve cells (MuRC), generated in vitro, are like quiescent MuSC with properties required for their use in cell therapy. The objective of the ongoing studies is to characterize the molecular signature, the metabolic profile of human MuRC and to identify new mechanisms that regulate the function of these cells in vitro and in vivo.