Dr. Drew Weissman, co-winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and Sylvain Baillet, Director of Research and Innovation, CHUM, and Director, CRCHUM
On October 22, nearly 450 people attended the CRCHUM’s 16th Scientific Day devoted to RNA biology and its clinical applications.
Researchers, members of the student and university community, and partners in the health care sector discussed discoveries that are redefining precision medicine.
A Nobel Prize winner kicks off events
Guest of honour Dr. Drew Weissman, Director of the Penn Institute for RNA Innovation at the University of Pennsylvania, set the tone for the day.
Co-winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine alongside Katalin Karikó, he is recognized for the discovery of modified messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. This major breakthrough led to the creation of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna's mRNA vaccines against COVID-19, ushering in a new era in biomedical research.
Weissman and Karikó found a way to modify mRNA over 15 years ago and developed a delivery technique to encapsulate mRNA in fat droplets called lipid nanoparticles (LNPs).
In front of a rapt audience, the researcher detailed the latest advances in modified mRNA therapeutics—promising tools for preventing viral infections, treating certain cancers such as pancreatic cancer and making gene therapies more accessible worldwide.
Equity in science is not an abstract concept for Dr. Weissman. It's a concrete mission to make medical advances accessible everywhere, especially in low-income countries. For the past 30 years, he has been working with researchers in Thailand, Botswana and elsewhere, helping them to develop their own laboratories. The result: 18 drug production sites have been set up—even in Ukraine, which is in the midst of war.
“I want the same treatments to be available to everyone, regardless of country,” he says.
It’s a vision that redefines the place of science in the world.
Advances in RNA biology
The rest of the program highlighted cutting-edge work on RNA, presented by scientists from Quebec, France and the United States.
Karine Choquet (Université de Sherbrooke) explored the links between messenger RNAs and small nucleolar RNAs to better understand gene regulation in the brain.
Dr. Edward F. Kreider (University of Pennsylvania) unveiled RNA-based approaches to fight against and, perhaps one day, cure HIV.
Martine Tétreault (CRCHUM) focused on non-coding RNAs involved in neurodegenerative diseases.
Finally, Sylvain Belse (INSERM, France) offered a critical reading of genomic medicine, twenty years after the Human Genome Project, stressing the challenges of equitable access to care.
Each presentation pointed to the same conclusion: RNA has become an essential tool for understanding, diagnosing and treating diseases.
Concrete approaches: from HIV to cancer
The day also gave research teams the opportunity to showcase their most recent work.
- Andrés Finzi (Paucity of HIV Envelope expressing cells upon latency reversal in ART suppressed PWH—CRCHUM)
- Dr. Simon Turcotte (Update on adjuvant personalized mRNA vaccine to prevent cancer recurrence—CRCHUM)
- Mathieu Gigoux, research associate in Dr. Simon Turcotte's laboratory (Cancer neoantigens beyond mRNA vaccine: new biomarker and development of adoptive T cell immunotherapy—CRCHUM)
- Miriam Rosas Umbert, postdoctoral fellow in Nicolas Chomont's laboratory (Leveraging RNA technology to reactivate and characterize the HIV reservoir—CRCHUM)
- Hana Fakim, postdoctoral fellow in Christine Vande Velde's laboratory (Investigating the role of cryptic G3BP1 in ALS neuropathogenesis—CRCHUM)
- Thomas Duchaine (Towards Transcriptome-Informed mRNA medicines—McGill University)
These presentations illustrated the vitality and diversity of RNA research in Quebec and around the world.
Looking beyond the horizon
A panel discussion moderated by Andrés Finzi also enabled Dr. Drew Weissman, Jeffrey Guiler (Merck Canada), Rahbar Rahimpour (Moderna) and Dr. Valérie
Martel-Laferrière to outline the next steps in RNA research. Together, they discussed vaccine innovations and the clinical challenges ahead.
In addition to the discoveries, this 16th edition brought to light the spirit of collaboration that continues to drive the CRCHUM community.
By bringing together a Nobel Prize winner, internationally renowned specialists and Quebec's next generation of researchers, the research centre demonstrated its ability to bridge the gap between basic research and patient care.
It was an inspiring day, in a place where science takes care of the world.
The CRCHUM would like to thank sponsors Merck and Moderna for making the 16th Scientific Day possible.
16th Scientific Day: CRCHUM welcomes RNA pioneer
Categories
CRCHUM events
