Two students of a RiSBOd network member shine at the IADR 2026 congress

Two dental medicine doctoral students from Université Laval, Diego Gonzalez and Husam Al-Nader, presented their research at the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) international congress, held in San Diego from March 25 to 28, 2026. Both are supervised by Prof. Abdelhabib Semlali (a regular RiSBOd member).

Diego Gonzalez stood out by winning the CADR-NCORH prize in the junior category for his project “Repurposing Antimalarials for Oral Cancer: Selective Efficacy of Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine on Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma”. His research highlights the potential of hydroxychloroquine to specifically target gingival cancer cells and disrupt their survival mechanisms, opening the way to new, more accessible therapeutic strategies.

Husam Al-Nader presented a novel project on interactions between Candida albicans and oral cancer. His study focuses on the vesicles secreted by each, aiming to better understand the potential synergy between the fungus and cancer cells. The project also explores the effect of a curcumin-based treatment on these interactions.

RiSBOd congratulates Diego and Husam on their commitment and contribution to advancing knowledge in oral and bone health.