AHFMR News
Sex and the brain
Can pheromones repair injured brains?
AHFMR announces $59 million in new health research funding
(Calgary, AB) March 13, 2008... The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) has offered more than $59 million in funding to 54 outstanding health researchers in Alberta. These awards are among the richest and lengthiest health research awards in Canada.
Dr. Samuel Weiss, an internationally lauded researcher at the University of Calgary, has been offered an AHFMR Scientist award - the highest level of award offered by the Foundation and worth more than a million dollars. He was one of the pioneering scientists to propose that brain cells can regenerate. A current research focus for Dr. Weiss is on the role that new adult brain cells play as triggers for mating. Dr. Weiss's achievements have changed the field of developmental neurobiology, with the proof that brain cell development continues throughout the lifetime of adult mammals. His discoveries into ongoing adult cell production may allow for the use of stem cells to repair brain tissue and allow for recovery from brain and spinal cord injury or disease
| What: | Introduction by Dr. Jacques Magnan, AHFMR Interim President & CEO, interviews with AHFMR Scientist Dr. Samuel Weiss | |
| When: | Thursday, March 13, 2008 | |
| Time: | 10:00 AM* | |
| Where: |
Health Sciences Centre - Lab: 2164 3310 Hospital Dr. NW |
* Please call Dwayne Brunner, AHFMR Communications, at (403) 619-4556 for more information
Photo Opportunity in a Researcher's Lab
Backgrounder
Dr. Samuel Weiss, funded by AHFMR for more than 20 years, achieved international prominence in the 1990's with his research on the brain. A significant portion of the brain is made up of nerve cells which communicate with each other through electrical currents and chemical messengers. They are essential to the normal, healthy operation of the brain and carry information to other areas of the body. Dr. Weiss has proven that brain cells could be made to grow again. His discovery could lead to new treatments for many paralyzed and brain-injured people.
Currently his research focuses on the chemical signals and brain regions involved in mating in order to establish if sex pheromones cause new growth of certain brain cells. Sex pheromones are chemical messages released by animals that are picked up by members of the opposite sex of the same species through their olfactory senses (noses). Dr. Weiss' work is with pheromones released by male animals. He proposes that pheromone detection isn't simply a case of smell, but that the female actually grows new brain cells in order to better discriminate between suitors and eventually pick the one she wants to mate with. The goal of Dr. Weiss's work is to discover if this specific process of brain cell growth and signaling can eventually be used to repair brain cell damage.
Dr. Weiss is an AHFMR Scientist, Director of the Hotchkiss Brain Institute and a Professor in the Departments of Cell Biology, Anatomy/Pharmacology and Therapeutics, in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Calgary.
Dr. Weiss is one of 24 researchers at the University of Calgary who were successful in AHFMR's 2008 senior personnel competition. He has been offered an award as a Scientist, AHFMR's highest award. This year AHFMR is offering $59 million in grants for up to seven years to 54 researchers at the universities of Alberta, Calgary, and Lethbridge.
The awards for University of Calgary researchers will total approximately $26 million
The 2008 awards include 30 offers to researchers who have received previous Heritage support.
This year's competition includes successful applicants from a number of different university faculties including, Medicine and Dentistry; Veterinary Medicine, Science; and Nursing. With the implementation of these awards, AHFMR will have contributed in excess of $950 million to the medical research community in Alberta.
Heritage investigators have earned international acclaim for their pioneering work in areas such as: heart attack therapy, nerve regeneration, the cell biology of cancer, novel diabetes treatments, drugs for viral infections, electrical therapy for paralysed people, vaccines, and better treatments for arthritis and chronic pain.
The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) currently provides funding for over 600 researchers and researchers in training at the province's three main universities. The foundation supports a community of researchers who generate knowledge that improves the health and quality of life of Albertans and people throughout the world. AHFMR's commitment is to fund health research based on international standards of excellence and carried out by new and established investigators and researchers in training. Total AHFMR funding more than a quarter of a century is in excess of $950 million. For more information, visit www.ahfmr.ab.ca
AHFMR announces $59 million in new health research funding
Heritage researcher investigates new techniques to prevent vision loss
(Edmonton, AB) March 13, 2008... The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) has offered more than $59 million in funding to 54 outstanding health researchers in Alberta. These awards are among the richest and lengthiest health research awards in Canada.
Dr. Yves Sauvé at the University of Alberta has been offered an AHFMR Senior Scholar award through this latest funding. Dr. Sauvé investigates new ways to study and prevent age-related vision loss. His research focuses on providing new screening techniques and using nutrition to prevent retina degeneration, a leading cause of blindness.
| What: | Introduction by Dr. Jacques Magnan, AHFMR Interim President & CEO, , followed by interviews with Dr. Sauvé. A live eye exam will be performed. | |
| When: | Friday, March 14, 2008 | |
| Time: | 10:00 AM - 12 (noon)* | |
| Where: |
University of Alberta - Medical Sciences Building - Room 7-45 (Corner of 87th Ave. and 112th St. ) |
* Please call Dwayne Brunner, AHFMR Communications, at (403) 619-4556 for more information
A photo opportunity with a researcher conducting an eye test in a lab setting will be available
Backgrounder
Dr. Yves Sauvé investigates new techniques to add understanding to the various causes of vision losses and ultimately toward developing treatments.
Diseases of vision affect more than 10% of Canadians, and are more prevalent in senior citizens. By the age of 65, one in nine Canadians develop serious vision loss; by the age of 75, this ratio jumps to one in four. As baby boomers age and approach their senior years, this will create significant challenges in delivering visual healthcare in a timely fashion. It is predicted that due to changing Canadian demographics, the increasing demand for ophthalmology services will be second only to cardio-thoracic surgery by 2030.
Dr. Sauvé is an AHFMR Senior Scholar and Assistant Professor with a primary appointment in the Department of Ophthalmology and a cross appointment in the Department of Physiology within the faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Alberta.
He is one of 29 researchers at the University of Alberta who was successful in AHFMR's 2008 senior personnel competition. This year AHFMR is offering $59 million in grants for up to seven years to 54 researchers at the universities of Alberta, Calgary, and Lethbridge.
2008 AHFMR funding to the University of Alberta totals approximately $32 million.
This year's competition includes successful applicants from a number of different university faculties including, Medicine and Dentistry; Science; Nursing; and the School of Public Health.
With the implementation of these awards, AHFMR will have contributed more than $950 million to the medical research community in Alberta, approximately half of that at the University of Alberta.
The 2008 awards include 30 offers to researchers who have received previous Heritage support.
Heritage investigators have earned international acclaim for their pioneering work in areas such as: heart attack therapy, islet transplantation for diabetics, nerve regeneration, the cell biology of cancer, drugs for viral infections, electrical therapy for paralysed people, vaccines, and better understanding and treatment of arthritis.
The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) currently provides funding for more than 600 researchers and researchers-in-training at the province's three main universities. The foundation supports a community of researchers who generate knowledge that improves the health and quality of life of Albertans and people throughout the world. AHFMR's commitment is to fund health research based on international standards of excellence and carried out by new and established investigators and researchers in training. Total AHFMR funding since its establishment in 1980 is in excess of $950 million. For more information, visit www.ahfmr.ab.ca