Patrick J. Rochette is a regular researcher at the Research Centre of the CHU of Quebec – Laval University, in the area of regenerative medicine, of which he is the assistant director. He is also Associate Professor and Assistant Director of Basic Research in the Department of Ophthalmology and ENT – head and neck surgery of the Faculty of Medicine at Laval University. He completed his graduate studies (MSc / PhD) in the laboratory of Dr. Regen Drouin (U. Laval), where he studied the induction and repair of UV-induced damage. He pursued his training with 2 postdoctoral fellowships at Yale University, including one in the laboratory of Dr. Douglas Brash, a pioneer in the study of UV-induced mutations in cutaneous cancer. His second fellowship took place in Dr. Yilun Liu ‘s laboratory, where he worked on the RecQ4 helicase in the initiation of DNA replication. He joined Laval University in 2009 and started a laboratory where he specialized in photobiology and, more precisely, on the consequences of cell exposure to low-wavelength light rays (ultraviolet and blue). In humans, only the skin and eyes are exposed to these rays. Thus, Dr. Rochette’s laboratory is interested in two fields of study, ocular photobiology and cutaneous photobiology.
Cutaneous photobiology
At the cutaneous level, skin cells are used as a model to study the mechanisms of protection against the genotoxicity of sunlight. These mechanisms include the induction of mutagenic damage, its repair, and induced cell death as a protective mechanism. In this part of the laboratory, the projects pursued are, among others, the following:
– Influence of the dermis on the efficacy of repair techniques of UV-induced mutagenic damage to the epidermis;
– Effect of chronic UVB irradiation on the cellular genotoxic stress response;
– Necroptosis as a new UV-induced, programmed cell death pathway;
– Involvement of UVA, alone or in synergy with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) contained in cigarette smoke in cutaneous photoaging.
Ocular photobiology
At the ocular level, Dr. Rochette’s research is mostly applied. It aims to understand the involvement of UV and blue light in various ocular pathologies. As UV light does not reach the adult retina, blue light is the most energetic light it is exposed to. In this part of the laboratory, the projects pursued are, among others, the following:
– UVA toxicity in the cornea, involvement of UV-Induced oxidation;
– Involvement of mitochondrial dysfunction in Fuchs corneal endothelial dystrophy;
– Involvement of blue light, alone or in synergy with lipofuscin and / or PAHs in age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
1050, chemin Sainte-Foy
CUO-Recherche
Québec, Québec
Canada G1S 4L8
- Amouret, SophieDoctoral studentHôpital Saint-Sacrement+1 418-525-4444, extension 84917sophie.amouret@crchudequebec.ulaval.ca
1050 Chemin Sainte-Foy
Québec, QC
Canada G1S 4L8 - Lambert, Marie-ChristineDoctoral studentHôpital Saint-Sacrement+1 418-682-7663marie-christine.lambert.2@ulaval.camarie-christine.lambert@crchudequebec.ulaval.ca
1050, chemin Sainte-Foy
H2-13
Québec, Québec
Canada G1S 4L8 - Larnac, EloïseDoctoral studentHôpital Saint-Sacrement+1 418-525-4444, extension 84917eloise.larnac@crchudequebec.ulaval.ca
1050 Chemin Sainte-Foy
Québec, QC
Canada G1S 4L8 - Méthot, SébastienDoctoral studentsebastien.methot.1@ulaval.casebastien.methot@crchudequebec.ulaval.ca
- Montoni, AliciaEmployee+1 418-525-4444, extension 48384+1 418-691-5439alicia.montoni@crchudequebec.ulaval.ca
- Nguyen, Liz Yen NyInternliz-yen-ny.nguyen.1@ulaval.ca
Apoptosis, the only cell death pathway that can be measured in human diploid dermal fibroblasts following lethal UVB irradiation
Journal ArticleSci Rep, 10 (1), 2020.
Chronology of cellular events related to mitochondrial burnout leading to cell death in Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy
Journal ArticleSci Rep, 10 (1), 2020.
Effect of laser pulse shaping on photoacoustic dosimetry in retinal models
Journal ArticleBiomed Opt Express, 11 (11), 2020.
Potential of sub-microsecond laser pulse shaping for controlling microcavitation in selective retinal therapies
Journal ArticleBiomed Opt Express, 11 (1), 2020.
Impact of ultraviolet radiation on dermal and epidermal DNA damage in a human pigmented bilayered skin substitute
Journal ArticleJ Tissue Eng Regen Med, 13 (12), 2019.
Chronic UVA1 Irradiation of Human Dermal Fibroblasts: Persistence of DNA Damage and Validation of a Cell Cultured-Based Model of Photoaging
Journal ArticleJ Invest Dermatol, 139 (8), 2019.
Absorption of blue light by cigarette smoke components is highly toxic for retinal pigmented epithelial cells
Journal ArticleArch Toxicol, 93 (2), 2019.
Extracellular Matrix and Integrin Expression Profiles in Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy Cells and Tissue Model
Journal ArticleTissue Eng Part A, 24 (7-8), 2018.
Enhancement of UVB-induced DNA damage repair after a chronic low-dose UVB pre-stimulation
Journal ArticleDNA Repair (Amst), 63 , 2018.
Persistence and Tolerance of DNA Damage Induced by Chronic UVB Irradiation of the Human Genome
Journal ArticleJ Invest Dermatol, 138 (2), 2018.
Active projects
- Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy and corneal transplantation: The traditional paradigm revisited, from 2019-10-01 to 2024-09-30
- Journée annuelle de la recherche en ophtalmologie , from 2019-04-23 to 2025-03-31
- Toxicité de la lumière et dysfonctionnement mitochondrial dans l’oeil humain, from 2021-07-01 to 2024-06-30
- Toxicité des rayons ultraviolets sous l’angle de la mitochondrie, from 2023-04-01 to 2028-03-31
Recently finished projects
- Réponse cellulaire au stress génotoxique induit par l'irradiation chronique aux rayons ultraviolets., from 2016-04-01 to 2022-03-31