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Short bio

Group leader, Multimodal Imaging of Cell Death and Inflammation

 

Present research

My research interests are in evaluating novel therapies in ischemic stroke, with a focus on neuroinflammation. To achieve this aim, I develop multimodal molecular imaging tools that allow to capture the spatiotemporal features of immune cells (in particular microglia/macrophages) in vivo and to track therapeutic cells after their adoptive transfer for immunotherapy. I use multiscale 3-dimensional imaging approaches ranging from whole-body (MRI, CT) to microscopic levels (phase-contrast imaging with synchrotron radiation).

Background

I have studied physics at the université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL) and at ENS Lyon in Lyon (France). I then obtained a PhD degree in human biology and biomedical engineering at UCBL. My work dealt with the quantification of regional cerebral blood flow using dynamic-enhanced MRI in patients. After my PhD thesis, I moved to San Francisco as a post-doctoral fellow in the Center for Pharmaceutical and Molecular Imaging at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). I learned to perform robust pre-clinical MRI studies while working on the quantification of vascular permeability in animal models of breast cancer. I went back to Lyon in 2002 when I was recuited at CNRS in the Creatis lab to lead the translational “Cerebral Ischemia” team with Pr Nighoghossian and Pr Berthezene. I joined the CarMeN lab (Cardiovascular Metabolism Nutrition) in 2015 to bridge clinical, preclinical and biological worlds together.

 

Skills and expertise

• Cellular and molecular imaging (MRI, CT)
• Nanomedicine, contrast agents
• Neuroprotection, biotherapies (regenerative medicine)
• Ischemic stroke, translational research, precision medicine

Highlights

• My portrait was published in the Lyon metropole journal in 2019 (in French) : Grand_Lyon_Portrait_Marlene_Wiart
• Our work has been selected by the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) to be highlighted in their journal Highlights 2021 : you can read it here

Funding IDs

As coordinator:

• Fondation pour la recherche sur les AVC (2023-2026). A new pleiotropic target in stroke (IMPACT) 
• Inserm Transfert CoPOC (2022-2023). A new pleiotropic target in stroke (IMPACT) 
• ANR TecSan Breakthru (2019-2023). Bicolor imaging with x-Rays to Evaluate A repair Kit THRroUgh dedicated labelling of stem cells and hydrogel
  
• ANR TecSan NanoBrain (2015-2021). Imaging inflammation in vivo in ischemic stroke – development of a multimodal NANOprobe & BRAIN imaging methods

As partner:

• ANR TecSan ROOTS (2023-2027). X-ray phase contrast and dark-field for oral health care
• ANR TecSan CMRO2 (2021-2024). Oxygen metabolism by MRI in ischemic stroke: an innovative biomarker in cerebrovascular diseases
  
• H2020 SPCCT (2015-20121). In vivo spectral photon-counting CT molecular imaging in cardio and neurovascular diseases
• RHU MARVELOUS (2016-2021). New MR imaging to prevent cerebral and myocardial reperfusion injuries

My CV

5 major publications:

1. Said M, Tavakoli C, Dumot C, Toupet K, Olivier C, Gilles A, Maumus M, Dong YC, Collomb N, Auxenfans C, Moisan A, Favier B, Chovelon B, Barbier EL, Cormode DP, Brun E, Elleaume H, Wiart M*, Detante O, Rome C, Noël D, Auzély-Velty R. A self-healing radiopaque hyaluronic acid hydrogel as a new injectable biomaterial for precision medicine in osteoarthritis. Theranostics 2025; 15(9):4054-4073. *Corresponding author
2. Ong E, Clottes P, Leon C, Guedouari H, Gallo-Bona N, Lo Grasso M, Motter L, Bolbos R, Ovize M, Nighogossian N, Wiart M*, Paillard M*. Mitochondria dysfunction, a potential cytoprotection target against ischemia-reperfusion injury in a mouse stroke model. Neurotherapeutics 2025 eb 10:e00549 *Co-last authors
3. Tavakoli C, Cuccione E, Dumot C, Balegamire J, Si-Mohamed S, Kim J, Crola-da-Silva- C, Chevalier Y, Berthezene Y, Boussel L, Douek P, Cormode D, Elleaume H, Brun E, Wiart M. High-resolution synchrotron K-edge subtraction CT allows tracking and quantifying therapeutic cells and their scaffold in a rat model of focal cerebral injury and can serve as a reference for spectral photon counting CT. NanoTheranostics. 2023,7(2):176-186
4. Hubert V, Hristovska I, Karpati S, Benkeder S, Dey A, Dumot C, Amaz C, Chounlamountri N, Watrin C, Comte JC, Chauveau F, Brun E, Marche P, Lerouge F, Parola S, Berthezène Y, Vorup-Jensen T, Pascual O, and Wiart M. Multimodal imaging with NanoGd reveals spatiotemporal features of neuroinflammation after experimental stroke. Adv Science 2021, e2101433.
5. Basalay MV*, Wiart M*, Chauveau F, Dumot C, Leon C, Amaz C, Bolbos R, Cash D, Kim E, Mechtouff L, Cho TH, Nighoghossian N, Davidson SM, Ovize M, Yellon DM. Neuroprotection by remote ischemic conditioning in the setting of acute ischemic stroke: a preclinical two-centre study. Sci Rep 2020 Oct 9;10(1):16874. *co-first authors.

Complete publication list on PubMed