Dr. Frédéric Bretzner is a FRQS researcher in the neuroscience group of the CHU de Quebec and an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Neurosciences of the Faculty of Medicine at the Université Laval. Since his appointment at Université Laval in 2012, he has pursued his research on the neural control of movement in physiological conditions with the long-term goal of promoting functional locomotor recovery in neuropathological settings affecting gait, such as spinal cord injury and Parkinson’s disease. As principal investigator, he has obtained funding from national agencies such as the NSERC, CIHR, CFI, and Parkinson Society of Canada, as well as international foundations such as the International Foundation for Research in Paraplegia and Wings for Life. He is the recipient of the 2013 Barbara Turnbull Award on spinal cord injury and two FRQS scholarships in 2012 and 2016. His team is currently composed of four PhD students, one MSc student, and one postdoctoral fellow researcher.
Control and plasticity of motor circuits in physiological and pathological settings
Combining optogenetic, electrophysiological, kinematic, and neuroanatomical techniques in transgenic mice, Dr. Bretzner has previously genetically identified a reticulospinal population of the brainstem important to motor control. His team has furthered this research by identifying and characterizing supraspinal locomotor centers important in initiating, modulating and stopping locomotion in physiological conditions. The team is currently manipulating these neuronal populations to promote functional locomotor recovery in experimental models of spinal cord injury and Parkinson’s disease.
Development of motor circuits
Using a mutant mouse model, Dr. Bretzner’s team has previously shown that DSCAM, a cell adherence molecule, is important in the development of neural circuits. Although DSCAM mutation does not induce motor rigidity or spasticity, it impairs posture and the repertoire of locomotor gaits (walking versus running gaits). Using spinal cords isolated from neonatal mutant mice, his team recently revealed that DSCAM contributes to the normal establishment of spinal locomotor and sensorimotor circuits. A better understanding of neural mechanisms underlying motor functions will allow us to identify new therapeutic targets to promote motor and locomotor recovery in pathological settings.
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Functional characterization of cardiac progenitor cells and their derivatives in the embryonic heart post-chamber formation.
Journal ArticleDev Dyn, 238 (11), pp. 2787-99, 2009, ISSN: 1058-8388.
Undesired effects of a combinatorial treatment for spinal cord injury--transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells and BDNF infusion to the red nucleus.
Journal ArticleEur J Neurosci, 28 (9), pp. 1795-807, 2008, ISSN: 0953-816X.
Changes in corticospinal efficacy contribute to the locomotor plasticity observed after unilateral cutaneous denervation of the hindpaw in the cat.
Journal ArticleJ Neurophysiol, 94 (4), pp. 2911-27, 2005, ISSN: 0022-3077.
Contribution of the motor cortex to the structure and the timing of hindlimb locomotion in the cat: a microstimulation study.
Journal ArticleJ Neurophysiol, 94 (1), pp. 657-72, 2005, ISSN: 0022-3077.
Motor cortical modulation of cutaneous reflex responses in the hindlimb of the intact cat.
Journal ArticleJ Neurophysiol, 94 (1), pp. 673-87, 2005, ISSN: 0022-3077.
Effects of excitation and inactivation in area 17 on paired cells in area 18.
Journal ArticleNeuroreport, 15 (14), pp. 2177-80, 2004, ISSN: 0959-4965.
Influence of NO downregulation on oscillatory evoked responses in developing rat superior colliculus.
Journal ArticleBrain Res Dev Brain Res, 138 (2), pp. 155-65, 2002, ISSN: 0165-3806.
Modulation of the synchronization between cells in visual cortex by contextual targets.
Journal ArticleEur J Neurosci, 14 (9), pp. 1539-54, 2001, ISSN: 0953-816X.
Comparative computations of spike synchronization in visual cortex of cats.
Journal ArticleBrain Res Brain Res Protoc, 6 (3), pp. 148-58, 2001, ISSN: 1385-299X.
Stimuli outside the classical receptive field modulate the synchronization of action potentials between cells in visual cortex of cats.
Journal ArticleNeuroreport, 11 (6), pp. 1313-7, 2000, ISSN: 0959-4965.
Active projects
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Subvention, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec - Université Laval, Centres de recherche affiliés, from 2017-01-01 to 2099-12-31
- Centre thématique de recherche en neurosciences, Subvention, Institutionnel - BDR, BDR - Centres de recherche reconnus, from 1999-06-01 to 2023-05-01
- Plasticité et développement du contrôle moteur, Subvention, Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé, Chercheur-boursier Juniors 1 et 2, Seniors, from 2020-07-01 to 2024-06-30
- Plasticity of midbrain nuclei after spinal cord injury, Subvention, Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada, Subvention Projet, from 2019-04-01 to 2024-03-31
- Plasticity Of Reticulospinal Pathways Following Spinal Cord Injury, Subvention, Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, from 2019-07-31 to 2021-07-31
- Role of DSCAM in the development of motor circuits, Subvention, Conseil de recherches en sciences naturelles et génie Canada, Subventions à la découverte SD (individuelles et d'équipe), from 2018-04-01 to 2023-03-31
Recently finished projects
- Optogenetic stimulation of glutamatergic neurons of the medullary reticular formation to promote the recovery of voluntary locomotor functions following a hemilesion of the spinal cord in mice, Subvention, Wings for Life Spinal Cord Research Foundation, from 2019-09-01 to 2020-08-31
- Plasticité et développement du contrôle moteur., Subvention, Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé, Chercheur-boursier Juniors 1 et 2, Seniors, from 2016-07-01 to 2020-06-30