Nathalie Sumien, PhD

My scientific interests are focused on identifying interventions improving motor and cognitive function during aging and disease state. Our focus has been on the interaction between antioxidant supplementation and exercise, and whether combining the two anti-aging interventions would further their benefit on brain function declines associated with aging and Alzheimer’s disease.
My laboratory also works on other interventions for other conditions: sigma 1 compounds and chemobrain (brain dysfunction associated with chemotherapy), hyperbaric oxygen therapy to alleviate the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, and new antiaging therapy manipulating internal acidity. Identifying successful interventions and their interaction with factors such as genes and gender will lead to specialized recommendations to patients. Furthermore, it will allow us to determine specific mechanisms involved in positive outcomes leading to the development of therapeutic methods to ultimately improve health span of individuals.
Another project of the laboratory is to study the interaction of stroke and/or aging with drugs of abuse and to determine whether drug use makes individuals more susceptible to stroke and development of accelerated aging.