We acknowledge and respect the Lək̓ʷəŋən (Songhees and Xʷsepsəm/Esquimalt) Peoples on whose territory the University of Victoria stands, and the Lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples whose historical relationships with the land continue to this day.
A series of discoveries spanning the last decade has challenged our view of microglia, the brain’s innate immune cells, showing their essential but previously unexpected contribution to the remodelling of neuronal circuits. In this emergent field of investigation, research in Dr. Marie-Eve Tremblay’s laboratory at the Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, aims to determine how this newly-defined mechanism could be implicated in the loss of neuronal connections that best correlates with the impairment of learning and memory across major depression, schizophrenia, aging, and neurodegenerative diseases.
The goal of our research is to design novel therapeutic strategies that specifically target microglia to promote brain resilience and healthy cognitive functions along the aging trajectory. We thereby aim to prevent and treat major depressive disorder, schizophrenia, and the highly prevalent sporadic forms of neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.
Featured:
March 14, 2025
Exploring Microglial States in Development and Following Cannabis Use
Join Dr. Haley Vecchiarelli (Post-Doctoral Fellow, Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria) for her guest lecture in the Division of Medical Sciences Seminar Series.
UVic, Victoria
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March 15, 2025
La Microglie, cellule immunitaire qui garde notre cerveau en santé !
Degeneration, trauma, Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease, memory, intelligence as well as genius, may be best explained by the study of these glial cells, which make up more than half of the nervous system. Specialists around the world, including Professor Marie-Ève Tremblay, are actively studying these cells, which seem to hold so many secrets concerning our health and well-being.
UVic, Victoria
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Latest news
Shaping Mental Health Futures at UVic
presented by UVic’s Mental Health Research Cluster (MHRC) team: Dr. Marie-Ève Tremblay (DMS, UVic), Dr. Hector Caruncho (DMS UVic), Anja Lanz (UBC), Ashleigh Enright (IALH, UVic), Bianca Bobotis (DMS, UVic), Dr. Benneth Ben-Azu (DMS, UVic), Karinna Vasquez Castro (DMS, UVic)
Last Friday, February 28, 2025, the University Club of UVic hosted the 3rd workshop of MHRC, bringing together a diverse group of trainees, professors, academic staff, mental health professionals, community partners and people with lived-in experience, for a day of presentations and collaborative discussions. Following the opening by Dr. Tremblay, Dr. Skip Dick, a Songhees Nation elder, joined the workshop for the territorial acknowledgment and inspiring speech about the importance of individual’s roots, identity and sense of belonging. The second invited speaker, Ryan Douglas, a therapy designer and co-founder of DeepWell DTx, explored the potential of accessible, easy-to-use and affordable non-pharmaceutical technological approaches to enhance the mental health and their commercialization, such as are online games, introducing the concept of ‘gamify-ing medicine‘. Lastly, Dr. Shawn Whitehead, director of Western Institute for Neuroscience (WIN) at Western University (London, Ontario), discussed the importance of tackling mental health problems through an interdisciplinary lens perspective.
Afternoon round-table discussion provided space for all participants to discuss the aims and principles of the budding Graduate Program in Neuroscience and Mental Health, Faculty of Health as well as Mental Health Research Center, particularly focusing on the role of community and its needs. Leading this initiative at UVic are Dr. Tremblay and Dr. Caruncho who aim to establish and foster innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration that will open novel opportunities in the field of mental health.
More information will be available in future at: (MHRC website in preparation)
Written by: E Simoncicova, B Bobotis
CAPI Research forum
On October 4th, 2024, at the University of Victoria, Dr. Marie-Ève Tremblay, Dr. Fernando González Ibáñez (postdoctoral fellow) and Parsa Khakpour (research associate) represented the Tremblay lab at the Asia Forum organized by the Center for Asia-Pacific Initiatives (CAPI).
CAPI is a research centre focused on research, education and community engagement in the Asia-Pacific. As part of the ASPIRE grant, The Tremblay lab has important collaboration with research teams in Japan. During their participation in the Asia Forum, Dr. Tremblay presented a talk titled “Studying the Brain Immune Cells to Promote Healthy Cognitive Aging” followed by a talk on electron microscopy by Dr. González Ibáñez titled “Advanced Electron Microscopy Imaging for Ultrastructural 3D Models in Neuroscience”.
See also https://www.uvic.ca/research/centres/capi/index.php
“In preparation for our newly received ASPIRE grant that supports Canada-Asia research collaboration and focuses on training of young researchers through exchange, it was particularly useful to learn more about the approaches of our Asian researcher colleagues across various research fields. In that manner, this meeting provided excellent grounds for further networking and identification of various support resources within UVIC, both areas necessary for future collaborations.” (Dr. González Ibáñez, October 15, 2024)
Written by: FG Ibáñez, E Simoncicova
Celebrating 🎓
Sophia Loewen, a graduate student successfully defended the thesis titled: “Maternal immune activation and sex modulate hippocampal microglial properties in developing mice and result in behavioral changes in adult mice”, earning the title M.Sc.
University of Victoria
Dec 4, 2024
Victor Lau, a graduate student successfully defended the thesis titled: “Light and electron microscopy reveal iron deposition patterns and novel iron-rich cell states across aging and Alzheimer’s disease pathology conditions“, earning the title M.Sc.
University of Victoria
Dec 4, 2024
Bianca Bobotis, a graduate student successfully defended the thesis titled: “Sex chromosomes and sex hormones differently shape microglial properties during normal physiological conditions in the adult mouse hippocampus“, earning the title M.Sc.
University of Victoria
Dec 3, 2024
Latest publications
Carrier et al. (2024) Iscience: Bone marrow-derived myeloid cells transiently colonize the brain during postnatal development and interact with glutamatergic synapses
Bobotis et al. (2024) Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience: Established and emerging techniques for the study of microglia: visualization, depletion, and fate mapping
Carrier et al. (2024) Brain, Behavior, Immunity: Behavioral as well as hippocampal transcriptomic and microglial responses differ across sexes in adult mouse offspring exposed to a dual genetic and environmental challenge