Grant: Doctoral Research Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

The Peripheral arterial disease (PAD), poor wound healing, and diabetic neuropathy are a trio of diabetes complications. On their own, but often together they significantly increase the amputation risk in people with diabetes. PAD is a disease where the lower limb arteries become obstructed due to an accumulation of fat deposition. This obstruction can reduce blood and oxygen supply to the limbs, leading to pain, tissue damage, and even necrosis (tissue death). In nondiabetic patients, the body can compensate for this poor blood flow by creating new vessels. In patients with diabetes, this process is impaired and raises the risk of amputation. The diabetic neuropathy results from nerve and vascular damage caused by high blood sugar levels over a long period of time. The disease decreases sensation, letting injuries to go unnoticed. As the disease progresses, neuropathy can also cause significant pain. Finally, poor wound healing is the result of impaired blood circulation that limits the delivery of essential nutrients for tissue repair. These wounds can easily be infected, exacerbated by a weakened immune system, which delays healing. Currently, there is no available treatment to improve the quality of life in patients with diabetes facing this triad of complications. Knowing that 70% of non-traumatic amputation are linked to diabetes, my research projects explore a promising experimental treatment using apelinergic compounds. These molecules, naturally found in the body, could reestablish blood circulation, accelerate wound healing, and alleviate neuropathic pain. Unfortunately, their short action time are a challenge for their therapeutic use. My project will evaluate new apelinergic compounds that could provide sustained beneficial effects and eventually offer a new therapeutic approach for the treatment these complications.