Thyroid hormones are critical for proper growth and development and are equally important in maintaining good health. Research has shown that these hormones play a key role in regulatory pathways that ensure cells act appropriately when signaled to grow, divide or undergo apoptosis (programmed cell death). Many molecules are involved in these pathways including proteins that are known to contribute to cancer progression. Dr. Caren Helbing is investigating the relationship between ING protein (a growth inhibitor) and thyroid hormones. ING’s tumour-suppressing action is reduced in many cancers, including a subset of breast cancers. Dr. Helbing is exploring how ING may be involved in regulating the way a cell responds to thyroid hormones. Clarifying the relationship between ING and thyroid hormones, may provide new insight into the ways cancer cells bypass normal cellular controls that normally would cause their destruction.
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Intrinsic capacity of spinal circuits for restoration of motor coordination after neurotrauma
While the brain is the body’s command centre, connections within the spinal cord control rhythmic activities like walking. The brain contributes to such movements, but spinal cord circuits can coordinate muscle activity on their own, relying on feedback from moving limbs to regulate the pattern. When these connections are lost or altered due to injury to the brain or spinal cord, movement in the arms and legs may be greatly reduced depending on the location and severity of the injury. Dr. Paul Zehr’s research focuses on improving understanding of how coordinated muscle activity in arms and legs can be improved after neurotrauma. He is working with individuals who have had strokes or spinal cord injuries to determine the extent to which enhanced sensory feedback techniques can retrain spinal cord circuits and improve limb coordination. New knowledge gained from this research may lead to more effective methods of improving motor coordination following brain or spinal cord injury.
Development of a leisure time walking program based on the theory of planned behaviour stage 1: belief elicitation and evaluation
Substantial evidence associates physical inactivity with the development of several chronic diseases and premature mortality. Conversely, extensive research indicates physical activity helps prevent cardiovascular disease, obesity, stroke, diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis and other conditions. Despite this information, about 57% of adult Canadians do not meet the minimal requirements for physical activity, and half of those who begin a regular physical regimen drop the activity within six months. The overwhelming majority of Canadians — more than 70% — choose walking as their preferred physical activity during leisure time. Dr. Ryan Rhodes is studying beliefs about leisure time walking. The research includes an initial study assessing physical activity beliefs and a second survey assessing actual time spent walking. Results from the research will be used to develop a provincial leisure time walking campaign for adults. Dr. Rhodes’ ultimate goal: developing effective campaigns for promoting physical activity in specific populations, such as middle-aged adults and older adults.
Animal Determinants of Emerging Infectious Disease
This unit’s goal is to improve understanding and ability to address the emergence of infectious diseases such as West Nile virus that are passed to humans by interaction with an animal host (such as mosquitos in the case of West Nile). The unit will focus on gathering sound evidence of the origins of such diseases in animal/environmental systems as a basis for developing effective, evidence-based disease prevention and control plans.
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Cancer Control Research Unit
This unit combines the skills and talents of researchers in the BC Cancer Agency’s Cancer Control Research Program and Canada’s Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre to create a critical mass of expertise in cancer epidemiology, environmental exposure assessment, genetics and biostatistics. The unit will explore the interaction between environmental toxins and genetic susceptibility in determining cancer risk, focusing on environmental, genetic and gene-environment studies in non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, skin cancer, ovarian cancer and cancers of the mouth.
Centre for Complex Disorders
Serious mental disorders affect thinking, mood and behaviour. The consequences are suffering, impaired function in daily life and yearly costs estimated in Canada at tens of billions of dollars. Like diabetes, hypertension and asthma, mental disorders are complex disorders, meaning there is no single gene mutation, experience or environmental effect that can be held responsible. With a history of focused but isolated research strategies that have failed to address these complexities, present day treatments for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are no more effective than those developed 50 years ago. There is also a lack of effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. The Centre for Complex Disorders (CCD) will seek integrative and transformative solutions to these health problems, with an initial focus on psychotic illnesses, such as bipolar disorder and some types of depression. These often begin in adolescence and cause those affected to lose contact with reality, and chronically become socially isolated and unable to work. The unit’s secondary focus will be complex disorders affecting memory in old age.
Centre for Health Services and Policy Research
This centre aims to expand research efforts focused on understanding the growing role of pharmaceutical agents within the health care system. In particular, unit researchers will focus on studying population-wide aspects of the financing, delivery and use of pharmaceuticals for the purpose of informing health policy, strengthening the health system and improving health. This will include developing a comprehensive pharmaceutical data infrastructure to support the research.
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Centre for Healthcare Innovation and Improvement
This unit is focused on developing and translating research knowledge into policies and practices that improve health and quality of health care for children, women and their families. It brings together full-time researchers and clinician-researchers with the multidisciplinary skill sets, resources and linkages to identify and address a wide range of health care issues. Research teams, which will include decision-makers, will evaluate specific health issues, design and test interventions for these issues, and then implement and evaluate the effectiveness of ensuing policy and practice changes.
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FIND: Fundamental Innovation in Neurodegenerative Diseases
The goal of this research unit is to understand the molecular mechanisms leading to neuronal (brain cell) death in Huntington Disease, an incurable genetic disorder that usually strikes in mid-life, causing progressive, irreversible and ultimately fatal neurological damage. With a focus on the fundamental molecular structure and function of neurons, such research also has relevance in understanding the development and effects of other degenerative neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease, and for understanding recovery from brain injury. As the study of disease reveals information about normal structure and function, this research will also contribute new knowledge about healthy brain development.
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Immunity and Infection Research Centre
This unit’s overall mission is to advance understanding of the human immune response involved in transplantation and mitigation of infectious diseases. The unit brings together a multidisciplinary team of basic scientists, clinicians and health professionals who are undertaking basic and translational research involving molecular and cellular mechanisms of immunity. Their goal: to improve transplantation outcomes and the ability to understand and deal effectively with infectious diseases.