| Title: | Full time professor (accredited) Département de médecine et spécialités médicales |
| Address: | Laboratoire de thrombose et hémostase Institut de cardiologie de Montréal 5000, Bélanger Montréal (Québec) H1T 1C8 |
| Phone: | 514 376-3330, ext. 3035 |
| Fax: | 514 376-1355 |
| Laboratory: | 514 376-3330, ext. 3155 |
| Email: | yahye.merhi@icm-mhi.org |
Biography
Dr. Merhi received a bachelor of science in biology from UQAM in 1983, a master’s degree in biology/pharmacology from UQAM/INRS-Santé in 1985, and a doctorate in experimental medicine from Université Laval in 1989. After completing three years of postdoctoral studies, he was recruited in 1992 by the Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) as an independent researcher in affiliation with the Department of Medicine at Université de Montréal (UdeM), where he has been a full professor since 2007. Dr. Merhi received fellowships from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Québec (HSFQ), the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada (HSFC), and the Fonds de la recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS) as a Junior 1, Junior 2 and Senior Clinical Research Scholar. He has received continuous support from the Medical Research Council (MRC) of Canada and then from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the HSFC. Dr. Merhi has also participated in a number of translational studies on antiplatelets and anticoagulants that are supported by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Dr. Merhi has published nearly 100 original scientific articles, reviews and book chapters. He teaches at the undergraduate and graduate level and has supervised approximately 30 students taking graduate studies and postdoctoral fellowships. His research work on blood cells and platelets involve collaborations with a number of researchers at the MHI, UdeM, Polytechnique Montréal, École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS), McGill University and Université Laval.
Team
- 4 graduate students
Theme
- Thrombosis
- Hemostasis
- Vascular biology
- Platelets
- Endothelial progenitor cells
- Antiplatelets
- Biomaterials
- Hemocompatibility
Research topics
- Heart disease can be caused by multiple risk factors, which cause inflammation by activating blood cells, and damage blood vessels. Unfortunately, current drug treatments do not prevent completely such reactions. Actually, a subset of progenitor cells called endothelial progenitor cells have shown promising results in repairing the damaged arteries and in limiting the reactions of platelets. However, some inflammatory molecules, such as CD40 ligand, may affect the function of endothelial progenitior cells and their capacity to reduce blood clot formation.
- Our research program aims to study the mechanisms involved in the crosstalk between endothelial progenitor cells and platelets in clot formation and how these reactions are affected by CD40 ligand.
- Our experimental approaches include molecular and pharmacological tools with isolated blood cells, and clinically relevant animal models of heart vessel disease.
- We intend to identify new drugs and to propose innovative approaches in the clinical management of thrombotic heart disease.
Publications
- Bou Khzam L, Hachem A, Zaid Y, Boulahya R, Mourad W, Merhi Y. Soluble CD40 ligand impairs the anti-platelet function of peripheral blood angiogenic outgrowth cells via increased production of reactive oxygen species. Thromb Haemost. 2013 Feb 21;109(5) 940-5
- Abou-Saleh H, Hachem A, Yacoub D, Gillis MA, Merhi Y. Endothelial progenitor cells inhibit platelet function in a P-selectin-dependent manner. J Transl Med. 2015 May 7;13:142.
- Bou Khzam L, Bouchereau O, Boulahya R, Hachem A, Zaid Y, Abou-Saleh H, Merhi Y. Early outgrowth cells versus endothelial colony forming cells functions in platelet aggregation. J Transl Med. 2015 Nov 9;13:353.