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null Samuel David, PhD

Senior Scientist, RI-MUHC, Montreal General Hospital site

Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience (BRaIN) Program

Centre for Translational Biology

Professor, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University

Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, MUHC

 

Keywords

multiple sclerosis • spinal cord injury • nerve injury • oxidative damage • iron metabolism • inflammation

Research Focus

My research focuses on how metals, in particular iron, induce damage in the nervous system in neurological conditions, such as spinal cord injury (SCI) and multiple sclerosis (MS). After brain or spinal cord trauma, iron is released from hemoglobin found in red blood cells, present at the site of injury due to bleeding. We study new ways in which iron causes such damage and are testing ways to prevent this iron-mediated damage to promote recovery. In other conditions like MS, iron stores within cells in the brain are mobilized and released to cause damage. We study how to prevent this and develop new treatments for MS and SCI. Iron is not always bad; in fact, the right amount of iron is needed for nerve cells to grow. Therefore, another area of work is on how nerve fibers acquire iron for regeneration. Other work in my lab also focuses on the role of inflammation e.g., the role of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in spinal cord injury.

Selected Publications

Click on Pubmed to see my current publications list

  • Ryan F, Blex C, Ngo TD, Kopp MA, Michalke B, Venkataramani V, Curran L, Schwab JM, Ruprecht K, Otto C, Jhelum P, Kroner A, David S (2024) Ferroptosis inhibitor improves outcome after early and delayed treatment in mild spinal cord injury. Acta Neuropathol. 2024 Jun 22;147(1):106. doi: 10.1007/s00401-024-02758-2. PMID: 38907771.

  • Jhelum P, Zandee S, Ryan F, Zarruk JG, Michalke B, Venkataramani V, Curran L, Klement W, Prat A, David S. (2023) Ferroptosis induces detrimental effects in chronic EAE and its implications for progressive MS. Acta Neuropathol Commun. 11(1):121. doi: 10.1186/s40478-023-01617-7. PMID: 37491291.

  • Ryan, F., Francos-Quijorna, I., Mir, GH., Aquino, C., Schlapbach, R., Bradbury, EJ., and David, S. (2023). TLR4 signaling mediates molecular, cellular, and extracellular matrix changes in chronic spinal cord injury that contribute to late-stage inflammation, cell death and poor functional recovery. Journal of Neuroscience Feb 7;44(6):e0778232023. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0778-23.2023. PMID: 38326029.

  • David S, Ryan F, Jhelum P and Kroner A. (2022) Ferroptosis in neurological disease. Neuroscientist. 2023 Oct;29(5):591-615. doi: 10.1177/10738584221100183. Epub 2022 Jun 8. PMID: 35678019.

  • Greenhalgh AD, David S. and Bennett FC (2019) Immune cell regulation of glia during CNS injury and disease. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 21(3):139-152. PMID: 32042145.