ERANET-NEURON JTC funding for Sophie Layé

Sophie Layé, INRAE researcher and team leader at NutriNeuro, has obtained a JTC (Joint Transnational Calls) funding for a project with several European partners:

Santiago Canals – Spain
Amandine Luquiens – France
Wolfgang Sommer – Germany
Philippe de Timary – Belgium
Raul Muresan – Romania

In Bordeaux, Charlotte Madore and Quentin Leyrolle, from NutriNeuro, are also collaborating.

Project : IBRAA

Inflamed Brain Response in Alcohol Addiction: Understanding the role of neuroinflammation, immunotypes and gut-brain reactivity for heterogeneity in disease course and therapy response

Alcohol addiction is a common psychiatric disorder with largely unmet treatment needs. The response to alcohol varies significantly among individuals. We argue that this variability is due to the interaction between the immune system and the brain. We will study vulnerability during early abstinence in alcohol use disorders (AUD). We hypothesize that cessation of alcohol consumption in these chronic drinkers is a stimulus that triggers a rebound proinflammatory response in the brain. The study aims to (1) identify vulnerability and resiliency factors in AUD, with spatial and temporal signatures transformed into biomarkers, and (2) to explore interventions that can attenuate the rebound neuroinflammation after alcohol withdrawal and therefore be neuroprotective and therapeutic. We will perform human studies in parallel with translationally validated animal models to investigate cellular and molecular mechanisms. Newly developed tools for non-invasive MRI-based mapping and quantification of microglia reactivity in the brain, will be used in both species to link peripheral immune factors with neuroinflammation and brain damage. Interventions will include omega-3 fatty acids and psilocybin, a psychedelic drug with anti-inflammatory activity and demonstrated efficacy for AUD treatment. A strong validation of our hypotheses would lead to modifications in clinical practice, including the use of nutritional supplements as potential treatments to enhance resiliency in AUD patients.

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Source

https://www.neuron-eranet.eu/projects/IBRAA/