Student and postdoctoral space

CHUM	Sabri Rial  Copresident of the CECRCHUM Postdoctoral fellow Gareth Lim's laboratory Cardiometabolic Research Theme

Sabri has been a postdoctoral fellow since February 2020 and the co-chair of the CECRCHUM. Sabri’s research focuses on analyzing the molecular mechanisms that govern adipogenesis, the process by which undifferentiated or little-differentiated cells are transformed into mature fat cells full of fat reserves. His research should help fight metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes more effectively. But Sabri isn’t just keen on Krebs cycles and other glycolytic pathways. Admiring science popularizers and their open-mindedness, he is also passionate about teaching, reading and news cartoons. If you get him started on metabolism, geopolitics or soccer, make sure you have no experiments or meetings on your schedule for the next two hours!  

CHUM	Kevin L'Espérance Copresident of the CECRCHUM Doctoral student Anita Koushik's laboratory Health Innovation and Evaluation Research Hub Theme

CECRCHUM co-chair Kevin L’Espérance is a doctoral candidate in Public Health and Epidemiology. His research deals with the causes of cancer, specifically ovarian cancer. His goal is to find ways people can change their lifestyle in order to prevent the onset of ovarian cancer. Kevin is a sports enthusiast and is passionate about discussing science. Building on past experience, he hopes to promote student research. Don’t hesitate to suggest a little race around the CHUM or to pique his curiosity by sharing your research project with him.

CHUM	Delphine Béland Doctoral student Marie-Claude Bourgeois-Daigneault's laboratory Cancer Research Theme

Delphine has been a doctoral student since September 2020. She is the treasurer of the CRCHUM’s Student Committee. She’s passionate about cancer immunology and biology, and more particularly, about different types of leukemia. She loves Excel files, learning new languages, French fries and puppies!  

CHUM	Hiba Daghar  Neuroscience doctoral student Alex Parker's laboratory Neuroscience Research Theme

Hiba represents the Neuroscience Research Theme on the CRCHUM’s Student Committee. Her project concerns the characterization of rare congenital diseases in different animal models. Her work deals with, among other things, the rare SRD5A3 congenital disorder of glycosylation and Cori disease. She has a particular interest in promoting scientific research into rare diseases. Outside her research work, Hiba is interested in science popularization and anything related to mental health. To this end, she is active on different committees, where she contributes to the organization of symposiums and science communication events for the general public. In her leisure time, she always finds time for a good hike in the outdoors. 

Lewis is the co-head of social events on the CRCHUM student committee. As a PhD student, his doctoral research focuses on the role of a non-neuronal brain cell, the astrocyte. More specifically, Lewis researches how early life stress impacts brain circuits associated with sleep-wake cycle regulation. Outside of academia, Lewis enjoys watching rugby, running long-distance and lecturing his friends on the health benefits of getting 7–9 hours of uninterrupted sleep.  

Shiksha Dutta Doctoral student Francis Rodier's laboratory Cancer Research Theme

Shiksha is a PhD student and she serves as the co-secretary of the CRCHUM’s Student Committee. She is passionate about cell fate mechanisms, senescence and cancer in particular. Apart from science, she enjoys travelling, baking, and reading mystery novels.  

Jérôme Fortier Master's student in epidemiology Vikki Ho's laboratory Health Innovation and Evaluation Research Hub Theme

Jérôme is in charge of communications for the CRCHUM student committee. He has been a Master’s student in Epidemiology since September 2022. His research project deals with kinds of exposures in work environments and the risk of chronic respiratory diseases. He is an avid downhill skier and will definitely be hitting the slopes this winter. Among his other pastimes, he enjoys reading, watching a good film and playing videogames.  

CHUM	Karen Geoffroy  Doctoral student Marie-Claude Bourgeois-Daigneault's laboratory Cancer Research Theme

Karen is the Cancer Research Theme’s student representative on the CECRCHUM. Her work involves the search for new treatment options using oncolytic viruses for ovarian cancer. Simultaneously, Karen likes volunteering for various charity events held by the Institut du cancer de Montréal and promoting this cause. She also enjoys good books, travel and outdoor excursions.

CHUM	Elsa Gomez Postdoctoral fellow Naglaa Shoukry's laboratory Immunopathology Research Theme

Elsa represents the Immunopathology Research Theme on the CRCHUM’s Student Committee. Her postdoctoral research project focuses on the study of immune responses against hepatitis C virus. She is passionate about the study of pathogens and diseases in order to develop therapies or vaccines. This is why the establishment of multidisciplinary networks is so important to her. After a long day of work, Elsa enjoys practising wellness activities such as yoga and classical dance. She also loves sharing her culture through gastronomy and discovering new recipes during her trips around the world.

Erwan Goy Postdoctoral fellow Francis Rodier's laboratory Cancer Research Theme

Erwan has been a postdoctoral fellow in the Cancer Research Theme since September 2022. He is the co-secretary of the CECRCHUM. His research deals with the study of cell senescence regulation in different ovarian cancer models. Senescence is a particular state of arrest in cell proliferation associated with phenotype changes. Many recent research studies have revealed the existence of treatments able to eliminate senescent cells specifically. Erwan’s research could open up new therapeutic strategies to fight ovarian cancer. In addition to science, and despite a very bad sense of direction, Erwan enjoys hiking and running. He is also a theatre buff. 

Baptiste Marin  Doctoral student in health technology engineering Sophie Lerouge’s laboratory Imaging and Engineering Research Theme

Baptiste is the Imaging and Engineering Research Theme’s student representative on the CECRCHUM. His project deals with the development of a chitosan hydrogel as a cell delivery vehicle for cancer immunotherapy by adoptive cell transfer. His science interests are mainly in the areas of polymeric biomaterials, tissue engineering and cell therapies. When not doing research, Baptiste enjoys hockey and soccer and being physically active. He also likes 80s music, video games, movies and reading.  

CHUM	Kadia Saint-Onge  Postdoctoral fellow Lise Gauvin’s laboratory Health Innovation and Evaluation Research Hub Theme

After earning a doctorate in community psychology at the Université du Québec à Montréal, Kadia began a postdoctoral fellowship in population health that deals mainly with the promotion of a healthy lifestyle and the influence of physical and social environments. At the CRCHUM, she is the co-advisor for physical and mental health best practices, in addition to being the student representative for the Health Innovation and Evaluation Research Hub Theme on the CECRCHUM. Driven by the issues of social justice and health promotion, Kadia believes in unicorns and could live on cookie dough ice cream.  

Sydney Wheatley Master's student Ali Ahmadi's laboratory Imaging and Engineering Research Theme

Sydney is the co-planner of social activities on the CRCHUM’s student committee. She joined the Imaging and Engineering Research Theme in September 2022 as a Master’s student. Her project consists of exploring unconventional culture techniques to grow “unculturable” bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract. Sydney is passionate about increasing female representation in the field of engineering and takes part in many different outreach programs with this goal in mind. Her absolute favourite pastime is playing with her dogs, but she also enjoys a leisurely bike ride and playing sports!