Bio

 

Stefania Maccari, with 2 PhDs and an HDR qualification, has specialized in research at the intersection of neurosciences and endocrinology. Her work has inspired and mentored young researchers, some of whom have become Full Professors at Florida State University (FSU) in the US, as well as at the University of Bordeaux, and Lille in France. She has played a pivotal role in disseminating knowledge and coordinating international research networks. Recently, a Laboratory Associated International (LAI-ULille France/USA) was established in collaboration with Professor Mohamed Kabbaj from FSU, Tallahassee, Florida, USA. One of seminal findings of S. Maccari, published in The Journal of Neuroscience (1995), demonstrated that stress experienced by pregnant dams has lasting effects on the behavior of their offspring. However, these effects can still be influenced by maternal care during early postnatal life. Stefania Maccari was a pioneer in establishing the role of maternal care in the developmental programming, showing that early adoption (changing the mother shortly after birth) could reverse the impacts of early life stress through increased maternal care. This groundbreaking early adoption study paved the way for extensive research into how variations in maternal care impact brain development through epigenetic programming involving the balance between stress and anti-stress mechanisms, such as oxytocin. In her research on offspring, Stefania Maccari focused on the long-term consequences of early life stress, exploring the mechanisms that shape both brain and behavior. Notably, she was the first to demonstrate that the hippocampus, a brain region also involved in memory and cognitive performances, is implicated in persistent alterations in the activity of the stress endocrine axis caused by early life stress. Recent work from her lab has highlighted that activating central oxytocin receptors can reverse hippocampal dysfunction and the resulting abnormal risk-taking behaviors resulting from early life stress. Moreover, her research unveiled a remarkable discovery: alterations induced by early life stress can be transmitted to the 2nd generation through an epigenetic mechanism involving hypermethylation of genes encoding the glucocorticoid receptor, which regulates stress response. It is worth noting that she relocated with GlycoStress team and research network (LIA-CNRS France/Italy and LAI-ULille France/USA) to the Glycobiology Unit UMR8576 CNRS at the University of Lille. This transition has provided her with the momentum to foster a new intellectual and scientific network in the realm of neuroglycobiology, a burgeoning field that follows the “omics” era. This initiative holds the promise of facilitating substantial growth in knowledge within neurosciences, spanning from genes to proteins, all viewed through the lens of glycosylation.

 

Prof Stefania Maccari
(Lille University)