Professional Qualifications and professional memberships

• PhD in Chemical and Biological Sciences for Health, Faculty of Pharmacy, University Montpellier 1, France
• MSc in Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University Bordeaux 2, France
• BSc in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry/Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, University Bordeaux 2, France
• Member of The Groupe Polyphenols
• Member of the Biochemical Society

Research Fellow, University of East Anglia, UK (2011-present) Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, University of Reading, UK (2008-2011) (BBSRC Fellowship)Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, University of Reading, UK (2005-2008) (MRC Fellowship)

• Invited and current member of the editorial board of: Nutrition and Aging; Neuroscience & Medicine; Journal of Food Science and Engineering
• Member of the “Groupe Polyphenols” Board Committee (http://www.groupepolyphenols.com/)
• Member of the Alcohol in Moderation’s Social, Scientific and Medical Council (http://www.aim-digest.com/)
• Invited and chartered member of the IFSAR (International Scientific Forum on Alcohol Research) (http://www.bu.edu/alcohol-forum/)
• Referee for research proposals submitted to the Alzheimer’s Association and the French National Research Agency (ANR).
• I regularly review manuscripts for the Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Free Radicals in Biology and Medicine; European Journal of Nutrition; Journal of neurochemistry, Food and chemical Toxicology, Food & Function; British Journal of Pharmacology; Neuropharmacology; Brain Research, Genes & Nutrition; Journal of Wine Research; Cell Biology and Toxicology; British Journal of Nutrition; Nutrition and Cancer, Cellular & Molecular Biology Letters and Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics.
• Invited speaker Nov 2011: 6th International Wine and Heart Health Summit, Newberg, Oregon
• Outreach July 2010: “Antioxidants and brain health benefits” (Decision News Media, Brussels); http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Antioxidants-demonstrate-brain-health-benefits
• Invited speaker June 2010: Antioxidants 2010: Science, testing and regulation, Brussels, Belgium
• Invited speaker Jan 2009: National Institute of Human Nutrition (IRNHA), Bordeaux, France
• Invited speaker Sept 2009: 5th Probiotics, Prebiotics & New Foods Meeting, Rome, Italy
• Invited speaker Dec 2006: International Networking for Young Scientists (INYS), Lund, Sweden

• Neurodegenerative disorders
• Phytochemicals
• Neuroinflammation
• Memory, learning and neuro-cognitive performances
• Molecular mechanisms
• Association between the APOE4 genotype and chronic disease risk

My research interest is to develop novel dietary or therapeutic strategies to delay brain ageing, cognitive decline and cardiovascular disease, including stroke and vascular dementia and involves the fields of oxidative stress, free radical biochemistry, neurodegeneration and the health effects of dietary polyphenols, such as flavonoids. Concurrently, my major research interests centre on two functionally associated fields of biomedical sciences: 1) The elucidation of cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the toxicity exerted by endogenously formed compounds, as well as exogenous agents, believed to be involved in various degenerative diseases; 2) The cellular and molecular principles involved in the protective effects evoked by potentially beneficial natural compounds.

Using a variety of experimental models including primary brain cell culture, age-related cognitive decline rodents and human intervention trials, my initial work has provided further insights into the potential for phytochemicals and their in vivo metabolites to promote human vascular function, decrease (neuro)inflammation, enhance memory, learning and neuro-cognitive performances and to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease pathophysiology. This work has led to substantial knowledge of potential mechanisms of action of phytochemicals based on their modulation of intracellular signalling pathways. In particular, my major contribution has been to show that phytochemicals exert such diverse biological effects through their modulation of intracellular signalling pathways (MAP kinases, PI3 kinase/Akt and Keap-1/Nrf2). My recent interests concern the investigation of the aetiological basis of APOEgenotype-disease associations, and the impact of this common genotype on responsiveness to dietary changes. This work is very much at the translational end of the research spectrum and aligned with the current move towards a more personalised approach to disease prevention and therapeutics.

Selected recent publications

Vauzour, D. (2012) Dietary Polyphenols as Modulators of Brain Functions: Biological Actions and Molecular Mechanisms Underpinning Their Beneficial Effects. Oxid Med Cell Longev. doi:10.1155/2012/914273

Rendeiro, C, Vauzour, D, Kean, RJ, Butler, LT, Rattray, M, Spencer, JPE and Williams, CM (2012) Blueberry supplementation induces spatial memory improvements and region-specific regulation of hippocampal BDNF mRNA expression in young rats. Psychopharmacology. 223(3). Pp 319-330

Spencer, JPE, Vafeiadou, K, Williams, RJ and Vauzour, D (2012) Neuroinflammation: Modulation by flavonoids and mechanisms of action. Molecular Aspects of Medicine, 33 (1). pp. 83-97.

Spilsbury, A, Vauzour, D, Spencer, JPE and Rattray, M (2012) Regulation of NF-κB activity in astrocytes: Effects of flavonoids at dietary-relevant concentrations. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 418(3). pp. 578-583

Vauzour, D and Minihane, A-M (2012) Neuroinflammation and the APOε genotype: Implications for Alzheimer's disease and modulation by dietary flavonoids and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Nutrition and Aging, 1 (1). pp. 41-53.

Vauzour, D, Buonfiglio, M, Corona, G, Chirafisi, J, Vafeiadou, K, Angeloni, C, Hrelia, S, Hrelia, P and Spencer, JPE (2010) Sulforaphane protects cortical neurons against 5-S-cysteinyl-dopamine-induced toxicity through the activation of ERK1/2, Nrf-2 and the upregulation of detoxification enzymes. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 54 (4). pp. 532-42.

Vauzour, D, Corona, G and Spencer, JPE (2010) Caffeic acid, tyrosol and p-coumaric acid are potent inhibitors of 5-S-cysteinyl-dopamine induced neurotoxicity. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 501 (1). pp. 106-11.

Vauzour, D, Houseman, ej, George, TW, Corona, G, Garnotel, R, Jackson, KG, Sellier, C, Gillery, P, Kennedy, OB, Lovegrove, JA and Spencer, JPE (2010) Moderate Champagne consumption promotes an acute improvement in acute endothelIal-independent vascular function in healthy human volunteers. The British Journal of Nutrition, 103 (8). pp. 1168-78.

Vauzour, D, Ravaioli, G, Vafeiadou, K, Rodriguez-Mateos, A, Angeloni, C and Spencer, JPE (2008) Peroxynitrite induced formation of the neurotoxins 5-S-cysteinyl-dopamine and DHBT-1: implications for Parkinson's disease and protection by polyphenols. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 476 (2). pp. 145-51.

Vauzour, D, Vafeiadou, K, Rodriguez-Mateos, A, Rendeiro, C and Spencer, JPE (2008) The neuroprotective potential of flavonoids: a multiplicity of effects. Genes & Nutrition, 3 (3-4). pp. 115-26.

Williams, CM, El Mohsen, MA, Vauzour, D, Rendeiro, C, Butler, LT, Ellis, JA, Whiteman, M and Spencer, JPE (2008) Blueberry-induced changes in spatial working memory correlate with changes in hippocampal CREB phosphorylation and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels. Free Radical Biology & Medicine, 45 (3). pp. 295-305.

Vauzour, D, Vafeiadou, K, Rice-Evans, C, Williams, RJ and Spencer, JPE (2007) Activation of pro-survival Akt and ERK1/2 signalling pathways underlie the anti-apoptotic effects of flavanones in cortical neurons. Journal of Neurochemistry, 103 (4). pp. 1355-67.