Stéphanie Proulx

Prof. Stéphanie Proulx, Ph.D., completed her doctorate at l’Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières in the Biophysics and cellular biology program. She then undertook a postdoctoral fellowship at Université Laval, where she developed an expertise in tissue engineering. Prof. Proulx is currently co-director of the regenerative medicine division of the CHU de Québec-UL Research Center, full professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Université Laval in the department of ophthalmology, and researcher at the Research Center in experimental organogenesis of Université Laval/LOEX. She is a member of the steering committee of the Cell, tissue and gene therapy network, and is the scientific director of the Vision sciences research network.

Her research interests focus on understanding eye diseases through tissue engineering. The eye is a complex organ, where all its structures are important in order to have good vision. Despite advances in medicine, the causes of many eye diseases are still poorly understood. Using cell culture and tissue engineering, Prof. Proulx’s team has developed three-dimensional models that make it possible to study the interactions that cells have with each other and with their environment. By comparing models reconstructed with healthy cells and models reconstructed with pathological cells, it is possible to advance knowledge on the pathogenesis of different eye diseases. These models are also used to test different agents for the development of new treatment strategies.

Her current projects include studying the influence of stiffness, intraocular pressure, and TGF-b on the functionality of corneal endothelial cells, studying the pathogenesis and development of new treatments for Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy, and the evaluation of the role of corneal endothelial cells in corneal wound healing. In the retina, her work is currently focused on understanding the role of choroidal melanocytes in protecting retinal pigment epithelial cells against oxidative damage.