Researcher

Title

• Associate Professor, Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal
• Director, Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal

• 2008-2013 Post-doctoral Fellowship, Departments of Medicine and Pediatrics, McGill University
• 2002-2008 Ph.D., Department of Nutrition, Université de Montréal
• 2000-2002 M.Sc., Department of Nutrition, Université de Montréal
• 1996-2000 B.Sc., Department of Nutrition, Université de Montréal

• Our laboratory is particularly interested in the acute and long-term metabolic side effects of pediatric cancer treatments. We have implemented the VIE Project (Valorisation, Implication, Education), which consists of integrated and personalized program designed for children and adolescents with cancer and their families, to prevent the incidence of late effects and improve quality of life.
• We also develop nutritional interventions for children and adolescents with cancer and their families to improve their diet and prevent long-term complications.
• We are working to understand the mechanisms underlying the cardiometabolic complications encountered during and after pediatric cancer treatment. We use a variety of approaches, including the study of the gut microbiota, inflammatory and oxidative processes, and experiments in animal models. We are also assessing the impact of different nutritional components in preventing these complications.
• We have also developed the PROBI-O-TISM study, which aims to test the impact of probiotic supplementation on the severity of behaviours associated with autism. With this study, we are particularly interested in better understanding the gut microbiota-gut-metabolism-brain axis.
• We also have projects on the metabolic hypothesis in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, focusing on the gut microbiota-gut-metabolism-bone axis.

• Nutrition
• Metabolism
• Pediatrics
• Childhood and adolescent cancer
• Oxidative stress and inflammation
• Probiotics
• Gut microbiota
• Nutritional interventions

Career Summary

As a researcher and nutritionist, my research interests focus on the impact of nutrition on metabolic aspects of complex diseases in children and adolescents. My interests include nutrition and cardiometabolic health during and after pediatric cancer treatment, the gut microbiota-gut-metabolism axis in relation to brain and bone, as well as lipid metabolism, inflammatory and oxidative processes.

Awards and Distinctions

• Junior 1 Research Scholar, Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé (FRQS)
• Richard and Edith Strauss Postdoctoral Fellowship in Medicine, McGill University, Faculty of Medicine (2011/09 – 2013/08)
• Poster of Distinction, Digestive Disease Week of the American Gastroenterology Association, San Diego, California (2012/05)
• Prize of Excellence, Foundation of Stars - Post-doctoral Fellow, Montreal Children’s Hospital (2011/09)
• 2010 ACG Presidential Poster Award, American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting, San Antonio, Texas (2010/10)
• 2009 ACG Presidential Poster Award, American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting, San Diego, California (2009/10)
• Prize of Excellence 2009, Category Sciences, College Jean-de-Brebeuf Alumni Association (2009/10)
• Grant for Post-doctoral Fellowship, Canadian Institutes for Health and Research (2008/09 – 2011/08)
• Post-doctoral Fellowship Award, McGill University Health Center Research Institute (declined) (2008/09 – 2009/08)
• Grant for PhD Degree, Canadian Institutes for Health and Research (2002/04–2005/04)

Major financing

• Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) - John-R.-Evans Leasders Fund - Université de Montréal
• Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé (FRQS). Programme ACCES-ONCO
• Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé (FRQS). Programme Oncopôle - Priorité Patient
• Fondation Charles-Bruneau

Presentations

• Marcil V, The role of gut hormones in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis pathophysiology: a pilot study, Fondation Yves Cotrel, Institut de France, Paris, 30 novembre 2016.
• Marcil V, Challenging cardiometabolic complications in cancer pediatric survivors: Reasons for better treatments?  2^nd Symposium of J.A. DeSève Research Chair in Nutrition, Montréal, 30 mai 2016.
• Marcil V, Morel S, England J, Bazinet C, Samoilenko M, Lefebvre G, Laverdière C, Krajinovic M, Sinnett D, Levy E, Microbiota-related acute phase proteins are predictors of cardiometabolic complications in survivors of pediatric leukemia, Digestive Disease Week 2016 of the American Gastroenterology Association in San Diego (USA), mai 20-24, 2016.
• Marcil V, Nutrition and energy metabolism in complex diseases: a working hypothesis, Fondation Yves Cotrel – Institut de France, Paris, 21 novembre 2014.
• Marcil V, Les maladies cardiométaboliques chez les survivants de la leucémie lymphoblastique aiguë pédiatrique, Rendez-vous d'hémato-oncologie pédiatrique: Guérir d’un cancer pédiatrique, quelle vie après ? CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, 19 novembre 2014.
  
  
   
• Marcil V, Morel S, Spahis S, Mankour H, Bertout L, Drouin S, Krajinovic M, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Levy E, Long-term late effects of acute lymphoblastic childhood leukemia: cardiovascular risk factors among French Canadian children and young adults. The European Symposium on Late Complications After Childhood Cancer 2014 (ESLCCC). Edimburgh, Ecosse, septembre 2014.
• Marcil V, Maladies cardiométaboliques: une autre réalité de la leucémie de l'enfant, Congrès conjoint de la SQLNM et du CMDO, 20 février 2014, Québec, Québec.
• Marcil V, Amre DK, Mayeur S, Spahis S, Lamarche B, Pouliot Y, Seidman EG, Levy E, Lactoferrin polymorphism associated with metabolic syndrome in children and adolescents, Digestive Disease Week of the American Gastroenterology Association, Chicago, Illinois, mai 2014.
• Marcil V, Seidman E, Lamantia V, Garofalo C, Montoudis A, Spahis S, Sane A, Levy E, The small GTPase Sar1b: expression profile in different organs and regulation by dietary lipids in animal and cell models, Digestive Disease Week of the American Gastroenterology Association, Orlando, Floride, mai 2013.
• Marcil V, Seidman EG, Sinnett D, Emonot L, Garofalo C, Spahis S, Sane AT, Levy E, Modulation of the Expression of Sarb, a Key Regulator of COPII Transport Vesicles, in Intestinal Caco-2/15 Cells, Digestive Disease Week of the American Gastroenterology Association, San Diego, Californie, mai 2012.
• Marcil V, Amre DK, Seidman EG, Bitton A, Sinnett D, Lambert M, Levy E, Hnf4 Alpha: A Gene at the Crossroads Between Crohn's Disease, Plasma Glucose and LDL-Cholesterol Levels, Digestive Disease Week of the American Gastroenterology Association, Chicago, Illinois, mai 2011.

Publications

• Tonorezos ES and Marcil V. Healthy behaviors and late mortality among childhood cancer survivors. Lancet 2023 Apr 5: S0140-6736(22)02632-0.
• Bélanger V, Morel S, Napartuk M, Bouchard I, Meloche C, Curnier D, Sultan S, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Marcil V*. Abnormal HDL lipid and protein composition following pediatric cancer treatment: an associative study. Lipids Health Dis. 2023;22(1):72.
• Napartuk M, Bélanger V, Bouchard I, Meloche C, Curnier D, Sultan S, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Marcil V*. Improvement of diet after an early nutritional intervention in pediatric oncology. Children (Basel). 2023;10(4):667.
• Normand E, Franco A, Alos N, Parent S, Moreau A, Marcil V*. Circulatory adipokines and incretins in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: a pilot study. Children. 2022 9(11): 1619.
• Kerba J, Demers C, Bélanger V, Napartuk M, Bouchard I, Meloche C, Prud’homme N, Gélinas I, Higgins J, Curnier D, Sultan S, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Marcil V*. Needs, barriers and facilitators of adolescents participating in a lifestyle promotion program in oncology: stakeholders, adolescents and parents’ perspective. Children. 2022 9(9): 1340.
• Bélanger V, Napartuk M, Bouchard I, Meloche C, Curnier D, Sultan S, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Marcil V*. (2021). Cardiometabolic health after pediatric cancer treatment: adolescents are more affected than children. Nutrition and Cancer. 2022 May 9:1.
• Bélanger V, Delorme J, Napartuk M, Bouchard I, Meloche C, Curnier D, Sultan S, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Marcil V*. Early Nutritional Intervention to Promote Healthy Eating Habits in Pediatric Oncology: A Feasibility Study. Nutrients. 2022 Feb 28;14(5):1024.
• Morel S, Léveillé P, Samoilenko M, Franco A, England J, Malaquin N, Tu V, Cardin GB, Drouin S, Rodier F, Lippé S, Krajinovic M, Laverdière C, Sinnett D, Lefebvre G, Levy E, Marcil V*. Biomarkers of cardiometabolic complications in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Scientific Report. 2020 December 9; 10(1):21507.
• Bérard S, Morel S, Benmoussa A, Teasdale E, Laverdière C, Krajinovic M, Sinnett D, Levy E, Marcil V*. Diet quality is associated with cardiometabolic outcomes in survivors of childhood leukemia. Nutrients 2020 12 (7): E2137.
• Morel S, Amre D, Teasdale E, Caru M, Laverdière C, Krajinovic M, Sinnett D, Curnier C, Levy E, Marcil V*. Dietary intakes are associated with HDL-cholesterol in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Nutrients 2019 11 (12): 2977.