Tuesday January 21, 2025 – Audrey Roy-Lachapelle

 

Audrey Roy-Lachapelle, PhD

Environment and Climate Change Canada

 

 

 

 

 

Cyanotoxins in High Resolution: From the Known to the Unknown

 

Abstract

Eutrophication of waterways leads to harmful algal blooms, often associated with cyanotoxins like microcystins. Other bioactive cyanopeptides, such as anabaenopeptins, also occur during these events. Over 500 cyanopeptides, including 300+ microcystins, have been identified, but their complexity and the lack of reference standards hinder understanding of their production and impact on human health and biodiversity. Our lab has developed targeted, suspect, and non-targeted approaches to explore the diversity and fate of cyanotoxins and cyanopeptides produced by cyanobacteria. By integrating in-silico fragmentation modeling with CyanoMetDB, an open-access database of over 2,600 cyanobacterial compounds, we have facilitated the characterization of both known and novel cyanotoxins. These methods are applied to toxic cyanobacteria in the Lake Saint-Pierre and Yamaska River watersheds as part of the Saint-Lawrence Action Plan. Our goals are to better understand their impacts on aquatic biodiversity within the context of eutrophication and to investigate their cumulative interactions with other agricultural contaminants.

 

Biosketch

Audrey Roy-Lachapelle holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Analytical Chemistry with a specialization in the study of cyanotoxins using mass spectrometry from the University of Montreal under the supervision of researcher Sébastien Sauvé. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship as part of the ATRAPP project, focusing on harmful algal blooms through chemistry and genomics, in collaboration with the University of Montreal and Environment and Climate Change Canada. Currently, Audrey is a research associate at Environment and Climate Change Canada in Montreal, within the Aquatic Contaminants Research Division, working on the study of agricultural contamination and its impacts on aquatic ecosystems and eutrophication in the Saint-Lawrence watershed.

Date
Date(s) - January 21, 2025
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Emplacement / Location
Université de Montréal - Campus MIL (Beer and pizza at 18h, conference at 19h in A-4502)

Groupe de discussion en spectrométrie de masse de Montréal (GDSMM)

Le groupe de discussion sur la spectrométrie de masse de Montréal (GDSMM) est un organisme à but non lucratif qui offre un forum favorisant les interactions locales, nationales et internationales entre les scientifiques oeuvrant en spectrométrie de masse. Le GDSMM organise des séminaires scientifiques et des forums de discussion présentant les derniers développements en recherche fondamentale et appliquée en spectrométrie de masse. Une réunion annuelle du GDSMM qui regroupe les étudiants et les post-doctorants a lieu à Montréal chaque printemps et offre une opportunité unique de réseautage en plus d’accroitre la visibilité et la sensibilisation aux contributions locales en spectrométrie de masse.

Montreal mass spectrometry discussion group (MMSDG)

The Montreal mass spectrometry discussion group (MMSDG) is a not-for-profit organization that provides a forum to promote local, national and international interactions among scientists involved in mass spectrometry. MMSDG sponsors scientific seminars and forums to present the latest developments in basic and applied research in mass spectrometry. An annual MMSDG meeting that regroups students and postdoc is held every spring in Montreal, and provide a unique networking opportunity to participants and enhance the visibility and awareness of local contributions in mass spectrometry.