Backgrounder
September 18, 2008
ADVANCED HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES AND PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH
Queen’s University
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Dr. Michael Adams, Dr. Anne Croy
Developing new strategies to prevent and treat cardiovascular disease
Provincial Funding: $161,021
Despite advances in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, it remains a serious health problem, in large part because current therapies focus on reactive strategies. Led by Drs. Michael Adams and Anne Croy, researchers at Queen’s University are focused on understanding the development of cardiovascular disease, particularly during pregnancy. By looking at developmental and pathological cardiovascular changes, their work will lead to therapies and lifestyle strategies that will help shift the approach from late-stage to early-stage treatment and prevention. In the process, it will improve the cardiovascular health of Canadians and reduce the economic burden posed by this condition.
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Dr. Craig Hawryshyn, Dr. Ian Chin-Sang, Dr. Paul Young
Improving treatments for eye diseases, cancer and HIV
Provincial Funding: $302,250
Optical imaging technologies are at the cutting-edge of research in modern cell, developmental and physiological research. At their heart is confocal microscopy, which possesses several advantages over conventional fluorescent microscopy, including improved resolution and a higher level of sensitivity. Drs. Craig Hawryshyn, Ian Chin-Sang and Paul Young at Queen’s University are using a state-of-the-art confocal microscope to study disease models, specifically diseases of the eye (macular degeneration, glaucoma), cancer and HIV. Their work could lead to improved treatments, as well as the development of advanced imaging systems.
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Dr. Colin Funk, Dr. Peter Greer
Making cardiovascular and cancer disease prevention and treatment more effective
Provincial Funding: $238,731
At a new imaging facility at Queen’s University, Drs. Colin Funk and Peter Greer are leading a team of researchers who will focus on the mechanisms of disease progression, the development of novel treatments and the evaluation of these treatments in pre-clinical testing. The goal is to improve the effectiveness of cardiovascular and cancer disease prevention and treatment. In the process, this research will draw cutting-edge pharmaceutical industry research to the province.
Dr. Victor Tron
Developing new treatments for skin cancer
Provincial Funding: $96,339
Malignant melanoma is a serious and often fatal type of skin cancer. Existing therapeutic approaches are ineffective and despite campaigns designed to reduce the incidence of skin cancer, the death rate from malignant melanoma is increasing at an alarming rate. At the Laboratory for Skin Cancer Biology and Therapeutics at Queen’s University, Dr. Victor Tron is using a cutting-edge approach call RNA interference (RNAi) to develop novel treatments for the disease.
Dr. Katrina Gee
Improving our understanding of immune damage from HIV
Provincial Funding: $176,000
With the incidence of HIV continuing to rise, there is an urgent need for better preventatives and treatments. Led by Dr. Katrina Gee, researchers at Queen’s University will focus on gaining a better understanding of how HIV affects the immune system by looking at the regulation of two important proteins called interleukin (IL-23 and IL-27). These proteins are linked to the cellular immune response and Dr. Gee will investigate how HIV affects their function. Her work will lead to innovative approaches to vaccine development and novel treatments.
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Dr. Linda Levesque, Dr. Sudeep Gill, Dr. Ana Johnson
Improving the safety and effectiveness of medications
Provincial Funding: $438,556
Studies conducted prior to marketing approval of prescription medications provide a limited perspective on safety, effectiveness and cost because of the relatively small number of people involved. Post-marketing studies that examine the real-world health and economic impact of medications are needed. Drs. Linda Lévesque, Sudeep Gill and Ana Johnson at Queen’s University are developing comprehensive research databases, using information from the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, to conduct post-marketing research on the safety and effectiveness of medications used for diabetes and dementia, as well as the cost-effectiveness of medication treatment for lung cancer.
Dr. Monica Castelhano
Uncovering how we sort out relevant from irrelevant information
Provincial funding: $98,040
Whether driving a car or searching for a wallet, our visual system has to be able to manage the incoming information and integrate it with relevant information from our memories. How we do this – how we sort out relevant information from irrelevant information – is the focus of research being conducted by Dr. Monica Castelhano at Queen’s University. Specifically, Dr. Castelhano is exploring what perceptual and cognitive processes our visual system has adapted to deal with complex, real-world scenes. Learning more about the demands of managing complex visual environments may help to develop environments that are more conducive to certain populations, as well as strategies to help with visual processing.
Dr. Kevin Deluzio
Developing better treatments for musculoskeletal disease
Provincial Funding: $350,000
The cost of musculoskeletal disease in Canada is an estimated $8 billion a year – a figure that will rise as the population ages. At the Human Motion Performance Laboratory at Queen’s University, Dr. Kevin Deluzio and his research team are using human motion analysis to study the role mechanical factors such as joint alignment, motion and loading have on the development of serious musculoskeletal diseases like osteoarthritis. By capturing and analyzing data of people performing a wide variety of tasks, they aim to develop non-invasive treatments that will slow or stop disease progression.
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Dr. Brian Amsden, Dr. Stephen Waldman, Dr. Stephen Pang
Using regenerative medicine to treat degenerative cardiovascular and orthopaedic disorders
Provincial Funding: $383,849
As our population ages, we’re seeing more cardiovascular disease, oesteoarthritis and chronic lower back pain. The cost of treating these conditions is escalating. Tissue engineering, where cells are combined with biomaterials to form new tissue, has the potential to solve these problems. Using advanced equipment, Drs. Brian Amsden, Stephen Waldman and Stephen Pang at Queen’s University will employ tissue engineering techniques to regenerate arteries, articular cartilage, ligaments and the shock absorbing portion of the spine.
Dr. Bruce Banfield
Developing new treatments for herpes-related diseases
Provincial Funding: $160,000
Herpesviruses are a large group of viruses that infect and cause disease in a wide variety of hosts, ranging from mollusks to man. Once infected, there is no cure. Infectious mononucleosis, chicken pox, shingles and cold sores are all examples of human diseases caused by herpesviruses. To replicate and spread, herpesviruses rely on components provided by host cells. Dr. Bruce Banfield at Queen’s University is focused on identifying and analysing the critical interactions between herpes virus components and host cell molecules. His goal is to develop ways to disrupt these interactions and create new treatments, work that has important implications for human and animal health.
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Dr. Robert Lemieux, Dr. Cathleen Crudden, Dr. Hans-Peter Loock
Developing medical drugs faster and at less cost
Provincial funding: $294,493
Many of today’s pharmaceuticals are “chiral”, including some of the most popular drugs on the market like Lipitor, Zocor and Nexium. Chiral drugs have two forms or enantiomers, only one of which produces the beneficial pharmacological activity. The other enantiomer is either inactive, toxic or can give rise to an entirely different pharmacological response. While many chiral drugs are currently being produced with both enantiomers present, it’s expected that new FDA legislation will soon force manufacturers to produce all chiral drugs with only the beneficial enantiomer present. But producing single enantiomer drugs is expensive and time-consuming. At the Centre for Chiral Catalysis (CCUBED) at Queen’s University, Drs. Robert Lemieux, Cathleen Crudden and Hans-Peter Loock are creating new technologies to prepare single enantiomer chiral drugs much more quickly and cheaply than at present. Their work will help to give Ontario pharmaceutical manufacturers a leg-up.
Dr. Catherine M. Cahill
Determining what causes chronic nerve pain to develop better treatments
Provincial Funding: $24,707
Neuropathic (nerve) pain is a debilitating chronic condition that robs its victims of their quality of life and costs the health care systems hundreds of millions of dollars a year. Current medications are not effective. Despite its prevalence, neuropathic pain is an understudied area of medicine. While it’s known to be caused by a primary lesion or dysfunction of the nervous system, the basis for its persistence and resistance to most medical treatments is unknown. At a new Behavioural Pain Assessment Workstation at Queen’s University, Dr. Catherine M. Cahill is exploring the mechanisms underlying chronic neuropathic pain with the goal of developing new and effective therapies.
See also:
- News Release:
Making Health Research Work For Patients - Backgrounder:
Ontario Research Fund - Backgrounder:
Inventing The Future Of Health Care - Backgrounder:
Lifes Sciences, Advanced Health Technologies And Pharmaceutical Research Projects - Recipients
