Hélène Castel, PhD, HDR, is Inserm Director of Research in Neuroscience and Neuro-oncology, co-founder of the Cancer and Cognition Platform at the University of Rouen Normandie, President of the Scientific council of the Normandie Ligue contre le Cancer and recently co-scientific director of the North-West Cancéropôle. She received a PhD in cell electrophysiology in the field of GABA-GABAAR in Neuroendocrinology at the University of Rouen Normandie. She has then worked on NMDAR and activation kinetics by fast concentration jump and patch-clamp techniques at University College of London as Postdoc in the David’s Colquhoun lab. After being hired as Researcher at Inserm in France, her team has contributed to understand the role of some chemopeptide GPCRs and G protein couplings in the context of brain gliovascular pathologies and glioma development.
1995-2000: PhD in Sciences, Cell Biology and Neurosciences – Electrophysiology (Dr Hubert Vaudry), URN
1995-1998: Research Fellow Ministère de l’Enseignement et de la Recherche (MENRT) – Moniteur; URN, France
1998-2000: Attaché Temporaire d’Enseignement et de Recherche (ATER), URN, France
2000-2002: Post-doc fellow in electrophysiology (Prof. D. Colquhoun), Welcome Trust Fellow, at University College London, London, UK
2002: INSERM CR2 and CR1, INSERM U413-Rouen
2010-2021: INSERM U982/1239 (Dr Youssef Anouar), Rouen
2011: Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches (HDR), URN
2010: Team Leader: Astrocyte and Vascular Niche, INSERM U982-Rouen
2016: Research Director Inserm (DR2), INSERM U1239-Rouen
2016: Head of the preclinical axis of the Cancer and Cognition platform
2022: Team Leader: Genomic, Biology and Plasticity of Brain Tumors NeuroGlio – INSERM U1245-CBG (Pr Gaël Nicolas) Rouen.
Coordonnées
Research Director at Inserm
Inserm U1245 “Cancer and Brain Genomics”, team NeuroGLio
helene.castel-gandolfo@inserm
+33 235146623
Activités de recherche
My research aims at characterizing new therapeutic targets in the context of brain tumors, between therapeutic efficacy and preservation of cognition and brain functions, through evaluation of cancer therapies on cognitive functions, neuroinflammation and brain plasticity. I’m specialized in cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, hormone therapy or immunotherapy on cognition/brain functions and on brain tumors, neuro- and immune microenvironment guided chemopeptide GPCRs and G protein by and cognitive dysfunctions in preclinical models. She develops preclinical models of PDX tumors and cancer surgery, and investigates the role of the cancer-derived myeloid cells, exosomes and systemic markers on brain plasticity and cognitive functions. By means of brain tumor organoids and iPS-derived cerebroids, she recently initiated programs on genetic impact of brain tumor developments and treatment neurotoxicities, as well as strategies of functional rehabilitation in preclinical models. Together, our research strength with NeuroGlio’s team members lies in complementary, multi-disciplinary expertise with access to patient tumors and clinical information and with the wet lab dealing with the development of behavioral cancer-bearing mouse models, animal models of glioma resection and recurrence, and also the implementation of neuroscience methods such as brain organoids bearing brain tumors and electrophysiology and optogenetics tools and skills.
Responsabilités scientifiques
2012- Member of the steering committee (COPIL) of the North-West Canceropole. Co-head of the 4th axis “cancer and cognition”.
2014- Member of the International Cognition and Cancer Task Force (ICCTF)
2015- Member of scientific board Ligue Contre le cancer Normandie).
2016- Co-head of the Cancer and cognition platform
2016 Chair of a symposium “Peptide GPCRs: a growing ambition as oncotarget « , 21st International Regulatory Peptide Meeting, Rouen, France.
2016 Co-Chair of the 21st International Regulatory Peptides Meeting, Rouen, France – 200 participants
2016 Co-Chair Symposium National “Impact des traitements du cancer sur la cognition, Paris – 150 participants
2018 Chair of a symposium “Neuroendocrine peptide GPCRs: From function to therapeutic status”, Acapulco, Mexico during the 22nd International Regulatory Peptides Meeting.
2018 Organization of the 22nd Meeting of the LARC-Neuroscience Network, Rouen – 110 participants
2019- Member of council (CA) of the association ANOCEF
2019-2025 President of the Scientific board of the Ligue Contre le cancer Normandie
2019-2021 Secretary and scientific board member of the International Regulatory Peptide Society (REGPEP)
2019- Management Committee (MC) Member of COST GLISTEN (2015-2018), ERNEST (2020-2023), 4NetBrain (2024-2027), coordination of WP2 Task2.1.
2020 Co-chair of GDR-GPCR meeting, e-meeting with ERNEST COST (International) – 250 participants
2020 – Guest Editor for “Cancers”: « Neurobiological Impacts of Cancer and Cancer Treatments: Mechanisms, Risk Factors, Biomarkers, and Prevention/Recovery ».
2020-2023 Member of scientific board Ligue Contre le cancer Grand-Est.
2021 Co-Chair of the national days of the charity “Ligue contre le cancer”, Rouen
2022 Chair – organisation of the international workshop «Glioma dialogue with the brain microenvironment” E-meeting – 50 participants
2022 Chair of organization of the FENS satellite meeting “Cancer et Cognition», Paris – 50 participants
2022 Co-chair of the organizing committee: annual meeting ANOCEF – 120 participants
2022 – Guest Editor for “Biology”: “Calcium channels in cancer”.
2023 Co-chair of the organization of the 9th biennnal ICCTF meeting in Caen- 160 participants
2025- Constitutive team and Co-head of the WP2 on the biology of Glioblastoma of the French CHANGING network (LABREX INCA)
2026- Scientific director of the North-West Canceropole
International expert for Foundation Brain Canada (1 M euros/per project), Wallenberg Foundation (1.5 M euros), French national evaluation of a Laboratory national HCERES, Canceropole Siric APHP-Emerging grant, ANRGeneric – CE14 – Physiologie et physiopathologie, Vici-grants Fundamental Research, ZonMw, Netherlands (5 Million Euros /5 years per project), International reviewer for Prof Recruitment of a senior researcher: University of Sydney, Australia, Marie-Curie Slodowska fellowships, H2020 Eur Transcan-jtc (around 2 Million Euros /per project), Conseil Régional Acquitaine (each year), Canceropole Siric PACA (each year), Europ. NSC Poland (1 Million euro/project), Europ. Tyrol. Sci. Foundation (1 Million euro/project), Ligue contre le cancer Normandie,Grand Est, Grand-Ouest, Ligue contre le cancer Grand-Est (each year), North-West Canceropole (Emergence and structuring, each year)
Responsabilités administratives
2003-2005 Elected member of the Commission Administrative Paritaire of Inserm
2008-2012 Elected member of the Commission Scientifique Spécialisée CSS1 INSERM-Neurosciences
Since 2008 Member of recruiting committees of MCU (Amiens, Lille, Caen, Rouen), chaires d’excellence (Rouen; 3 different chaires) and Professor (Lille, Caen, Amiens)
2012-2014 Member of the Jury Bpi France
2012-2015 Member of the Comité de Recherche en Matière Biomédicale et de Santé Since 2012 Member of jury of selection and audition board of the ‘programmes structurants” of the North-West Canceropole
Since 2012: Member “Commissions de Spécialistes” (66 ème – 69ème sections) of the University of Rouen Normandy.
2013 Member of the Comité Contrat d’Interface Hospitalier INSERM
2015 ad hoc consulting for Novartis International (Zurich, December 2015)
2015-2018 Elected Member of the department of biology of the University Rouen Normandie
2015-2017 Inserm representative of the CRBSP- of Rouen, France
2020 Coordination of a Working TaskForce “Tumeur Cérébrales” within the North-West Cancéropole.
2020 Member of the COPIL of the PAIR Tumeurs Cérébrales (2020).
2022- Member of the ALBA network- volunteer applicant/ambassador current application
2022- Member of the French network Femmes et Sciences
2023 ad hoc consulting for Gilead France (May 2023)
2024- Inserm representative of the CRBSP- of Rouen, France
Responsabilités pédagogiques
Since 2012: Member of Jury of Master 1 and 2, PhD defense (40) and HDR (5)
Since 2008: About 35 hours of teaching per year in Master 1 and 2 “Neurosciences” and “Health”, based on my research skills and the concepts. For most, these are lectures or conferences.
Since 2006: Director of 10 PhD students, and 6 post-doc research fellows, 5 Engineer research fellows.
2007-: Lead of projects with foreign scientists: M. Martins, PhD student, from Universidade Lusófona, ECTS, CBIOS, Lisbon, Portugal, Dr Ian Jonsthon, Assistant Professor. School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Australia; P. Kasapidou, PhD student, Medway School of Pharmacy, University of Kent, UK.
– Since 2012: Co-lead of a teaching unit in the “Neurosciences” Rouen/Caen master’s 2: Neuro-Oncology (20 h).
– Since 2023: Head of the DIU (Rouen-Caen) Cancer and Cognition
Mots-clés recherche
-
Brain, cancer, glioblastoma, GPCR, vessels, cognition, microenvironment, organoide, tumoroid, preclinical model, immune therapy