About the Seminar: I will first introduce the blood-brain barrier (BBB) as both a physicochemical barrier and a dynamic biological interface between the periphery and the central nervous system (CNS), emphasizing its key role as a “live” organ maintaining brain homeostasis. Starting from a historical perspective, I will explore some misconception about the BBB. I will then briefly review the main approaches used to study BBB function and discuss what these techniques actually measure. Finally, I will summarize how the BBB is implicated in cerebrovascular diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s disease, and how it regulates the exchange of beneficial and potentially harmful compounds between the blood and the brain.
Relevant pre-readings: The duality of the BBB: breaking the myth of the blood-brain barrier breakdown + reviews cited therein
Learning Objectives:
Differentiate between the BBB as a physicochemical barrier versus as a dynamic biological interface.
Understand what the main experimental techniques used to study the BBB actually measure (readouts).
Recognize the key physiological functions of the BBB in regulating exchanges between the blood and the brain.
Describe how BBB dysfunction may contribute to the development and progression of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.
About Dr. Calon: Dr. Frédéric Calon is a professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy at Université Laval and a researcher at the CHU de Québec–Université Laval Research Center. His work focuses on the mechanisms and biomarkers of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s disease (AD), with a strong emphasis on blood–brain barrier transport, metabolic factors, and lipid biology. He is the Scientific Director of CIMA-Q (Consortium for the Early Identification of Alzheimer’s Disease–Quebec), a large longitudinal cohort dedicated to improving early detection and understanding of AD. He co-leads the International Research Network (IRN) Food4BrainHealth (IRN-F4BH), focused on the links between nutrition and neurodegenerative diseases. Through translational research combining clinical cohorts, human tissue studies, and experimental in vivo models, his team aims to identify novel biomarkers and therapeutic strategies to slow or prevent neurodegenerative diseases.