Author: Julie
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A non-invasive method to detect Alzheimer’s disease
Volume in brain region linked to physiological changes characteristic of AD New research has drawn a link between changes in the brain’s anatomy and biomarkers that are known to appear at the earliest stages of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), findings that could one day provide a sensitive but non-invasive test for AD before cognitive symptoms appear.
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How chronic social stress can lead to depression
A recent publication by Caroline Ménard shows that chronic stress, as occurs in cases of bullying, can make the blood-brain barrier more permeable to contaminants and microbes that may be in the blood. As the brains of depressed individuals show signs of inflammation, Caroline Ménard and her colleagues had hypothesized that leakiness of the blood…
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2017 Advocacy archives
Release of the Report of the Standing Committee on Finances (FINA) Use this link to view the report of the FINA committee, released after the budget consultations of the Fall 2017. http://www.ourcommons.ca/DocumentViewer/en/42-1/FINA/report-21/ Recommendation 50 Use the Fundamental Science Review (the Naylor Report) as a framework for long-term support of science and research. In particular, the…
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SickKids researchers discover precise molecular mechanisms that can influence memory
Learning and memory are crucial parts of human cognition, yet the biological processes that govern how we learn and store different types of memories are poorly understood. Although a cellular process called synaptic plasticity has long been thought to contribute to learning and memory, many of the neural mechanisms behind synaptic plasticity have remained unclear.…
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Canadian Researchers Reveal How Certain Chronic Diseases Can Worsen The Effects of Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple Sclerosis is known as a progressive disease in which symptoms worsen over time. But for some 85% of those who suffer, the first stages of the illness come in waves. The individual may feel perfectly well some days while others are marked with worsening or new symptoms. Officially this condition is known as relapsing…
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Researchers at SickKids identify an anti-cancer drug as a candidate to inhibit the degeneration of neurons.
Nerve injuries and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and glaucoma share some characteristics, one of which is the degeneration of a part of neurons called the axon. Axons are long extensions that branch out of the cell body to allow neurons to connect to other…
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uOBMRI researchers open new doors for Parkinson’s drug therapies
Dr. David Park has spent countless hours exploring how deactivating a gene impacts the way a cell handles the very nutrients it needs for its own survival and proper function. To Park and his research team, it’s an essential piece of the puzzle that is Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s affects 10 million people worldwide, causing a…
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Neuroscientists link memory fundamentals with Alzheimer’s disease in promising study
Deteriorating memory function is a scary, life changing symptom associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) – a neurodegenerative disease exhibited by cognitive declines such as speech, behaviour and thinking processes. Even though it is the most common form of dementia and the prevalence is continuously rising, there is no cure. While there are medications to help…
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Child abuse affects brain wiring
Researchers from the McGill Group for Suicide Studies, based at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute and McGill University’s Department of Psychiatry, have just published research in the American Journal of Psychiatry that suggests that the long-lasting effects of traumatic childhood experiences, like severe abuse, may be due to an impaired structure and functioning of cells in the anterior…
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Is cardiovascular health the key to protecting the brain against dementia?
New research from the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health asks: Can “good” cholesterol protect against age-related cognitive decline? A trio of papers from researchers in Dr. Cheryl Wellington’s lab illustrate new context for the role of high-density lipoproteins (HDL) – commonly described as good cholesterol – in protecting the brain against disease.