[LUM#11] Noise for senescent cells
Comparing the senescent cells that accumulate in our joints as we age, to the noisy neighbor in a building, was an obvious choice. A funny, hard-hitting image that earned biology PhD student Yassin Tachikart victory in the regional final of the "My thesis in 180 seconds" competition and qualification for the national final.
For the second year running, the Stem Cells, Cell Plasticity, Regenerative Medicine and Immunotherapy Laboratory has provided the Occitanie region with its winner in the "Ma thèse en 180 secondes" (My thesis in 180 seconds) competition. Yassin Tachikart succeeded Nadège Nziza by winning the regional final of the competition, before advancing, with Valentin Chaput, second from Montpellier, to the national final held in Grenoble last June.
Beneficial cells
A doctoral student at Inserm under the supervision of Jean-Marc Brondello, Yassin Tachikart has been working for three years on the role of stem cell senescence in osteoarthritis of the knee. The scientific definition of senescence is the cessation of proliferation," explains the young researcher, "and a senescent cell is one that can no longer divide.
Contrary to popular belief, senescent cells play a role in our bodies throughout our lives, and a particularly beneficial one at that, since " basically, these cells intervene to repair damaged tissues by provoking the differentiation of cells around them, or by involving the immune system ", explains the doctoral student. Similarly, when a cell accumulates mutations and risks becoming cancerous, senescence acts as a means of defense. " To prevent the appearance of cancer and anarchic division, these cells will become senescent and be eliminated by the immune system. So, in theory, yes, it's really great ".
Accumulation with aging
The problem is that, for various reasons linked to aging, these cells appear more rapidly or are no longer properly eliminated, and accumulate in the joints. They then disrupt their environment, spreading inflammatory molecules around them, which are at the root of diseases such as osteoarthritis. In Yassin's words, they become " that neighbor who, at 4 a.m., cranks up the music and wakes up the whole building.
In his thesis work, which he will submit in October 2019, the researcher highlighted " the role of a protein that causes joint cells to senesce. It could enable us to identify new therapeutic targets." Some of this work is due to be published shortly in the scientific journal Aging , and has already been published in the journal Les cahiers de myologie(Targeting senescent cells, 2018) .
The means to do it
A fitting conclusion for the man who, on the MT180 stage, suggested that we should no longer " add years to life, but life to years ". In the meantime, at 28, his life is well ahead of him. And while Yassin has no shortage of projects, he prefers to remain open to all opportunities. " What I really want to do is research. Whether it's in the public sector, in the private sector through a start-up, in France or abroad, as long as I'm given the means, I'll do it. Research to follow, for a more worry-free retirement.
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