Ses champs d’expertise portent sur la découverte et la validation de cibles thérapeutiques ainsi que la pharmacothérapie (système nerveux central).

Dans le cadre des recherches sur la maladie de Parkison, les recherches de l’équipe du professeur Daniel Lévesque se concentrent sur la conception de modulateurs hautement sélectifs du complexe de récepteurs nucléaires Nur77/RXR, une nouvelle cible pharmacologique prometteuse pour les troubles du mouvement involontaire anormal, ou dyskinésie causée par la lévodopa.

Daniel Lévesque est professeur titulaire à la Faculté de pharmacie de l’Université de Montréal.

Publications récentes:

1. Kwan C, C Lévesque, D Bédard, I Frouni, JM Yusuf, A Hamadjida, D Lévesque, PBS Clarke and P Huot, Autoradiographic labelling of 5-HT₃ receptors in the hemi-parkinsonian rat brain, Neurosci. Res., 177: 135-144, 2022.
2. Dodat F, S Mader and D Lévesque, Minireview - what is known about SUMOylation among Nr4a family members, J. Mol. Biol., 433 (2021) 167212
3. Servonnet A, F Allain, A Gravel-Chouinard, G Hernandez, C Bourdeau Caporuscio, M Legrix, D Lévesque, PP Rompré and AN Samaha, Dopaminergic mechanisms underlying the expression of antipsychotic-induced dopamine supersensitivity in rats. Neuropharmacology, 197 (2021) 108747.
4. Voyer D, J Einsiedel, P Gmeiner, D Lévesque and PP Rompré, Neurotensin-induced amphetamine sensitization: A key role for ventral tegmental area neurotensin type 2 receptors and MAP kinase pathway, Addiction Biology, Sept;26(5):e13008, 2021.
5. Dodat F, D Cotnoir-White, E Dianati, A Vallet, S. Mader and D Lévesque, Complex regulation of orphan nuclear receptor Nur77 (Nr4a1) transcriptional activity by SUMO2 and PIASg, BBA Mol. Cell Res. 1868, 118908, 2021.
6. Blanchet PJ & D Lévesque, Time for a new slate in tardive dyskinesia research, Mov. Disorders, 35: 752-755, 2020.
7. Véronneau-Veilleux F, P Robaey, M Ursino D Lévesque and F Nekka, Nonlinear pharmacodynamics of Levodopa through Parkinson’s disease progression, Chaos 30, 093146 (2020).
8. Fakhoury M, G Hernandez, D Lévesque and PP Rompré, Modulation of brain stimulation reward and locomotor activity by ionotropic glutamate receptors of the tail of the ventral tegmental area, Behav. Brain Res. 393: 112785, 2020.
9. Hernandez G, S Mahmoudi, M Cyr, J Diaz, PJ Blanchet and D Lévesque, Tardive dyskinesia is associated with altered putamen Akt/GSK-3b signaling in non-human primates, Mov. Disorders, 34: 717-726, 2019.
10. Giguère N, C Pacelli, C Saumure, MJ Bourque, D Matheoud, D Lévesque, RS Slack, DS Park and LE Trudeau, Comparative analysis of Parkinson's disease-associated genes reveals altered survival and bioenergetics of parkin-deficient dopamine neurons in mice, J. Biol. Chem., 293: 9580-9593, 2018.
11. Bhardwaj SK, F Dodat, D Lévesque and LK Srivastava, Altered regulation of Nur77 nuclear receptor gene expression in the mesocorticolimbic regions of the rat brain by amphetamine sensitization, Brain Res., 1694: 46-54, 2018.
12. Rouillard C, Baillargeon J, B Paquet, M St-Hilaire, J Maheux, C Lévesque, N Darlix, S Majeur and D Lévesque, Genetic disruption of the nuclear receptor Nur77 (Nr4a1) in rat reduces dopamine cell loss and L-Dopa-induced dyskinesia in experimental Parkinson’s disease, Exp. Neurol, 304: 143-153, 2018.
13. Jeanneteau F, C Barrere, M Vos, CJM De Vries, C Rouillard, D Lévesque, Y Dromard, MP Moisan, V Duric, TC Franklin, RS Duman, DA Lewis, SD Ginsberg and M Arango-Margarita, The stress-induced transcription factor NR4A1 adjusts mitochondrial function and synapse number in prefrontal cortex. J. Neuroscience, 38: 1335-1350, 2018.
14. Lévesque C, G Hernandez, S Mahmoudi, F Calon, F Gasparini, B Gomez-Mancilla, PJ Blanchet and D Lévesque, Deficient striatal adaptation in aminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmission is associated with tardive dyskinesia development in non-human primates exposed to antipsychotic drugs, Neuroscience, 361: 43-57, 2017.
15. Servonnet A, C Bouchard, AM Bédard, D Lévesque, PP Rompré and AN Samaha, Neurotensin in the nucleus accumbens reverses dopamine supersensitivity evoked by antipsychotic treatment, Neuropharmacology, 123: 10-21, 2017.
16. Allain F, DCS Roberts, D Lévesque and AN Samaha, Intermittent intake of rapid cocaine injections promotes robust psychomotor sensitization, increased incentive motivation for the drug and mGlu2/3 receptor dysregulation, Neuropharmacology, 117: 227-237, 2017.