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A Patient-Derived hiPSC Neuronal Platform for Drug Discovery in Parkinson’s Disease and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Project Overview

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) are two of the most common and devastating neurodegenerative diseases, affecting more than 2% of the population over the age of 65. However, a major hindrance in developing therapies for disorders of the brain has been limited access to human neurons from affected patients. A breakthrough came from the field of stem cell biology, in which a group of factors were identified that could transform skin or blood cells from any individual, into stem cells, termed an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC). These cells possessed all the normal features of a stem cell, and more importantly; could be induced to form many different cell types, including neurons. Thus, with easy access to human neurons, diseases such as PD and ALS could now be modelled and interrogated in a dish. The interdisciplinary team led by Dr Edward Fon at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (MNI) in partnership with the Centre for Drug Research and Discovery (CDRD) proposes to develop a “hiPSC-based drug discovery platform in Canada focused on PD and ALS”. Taking advantage of these advances, the team will provide curated PD and ALS patient samples along with expertise in the development of exquisitely disease relevant cell-based assays. They believe it will be the access to hiPSC lines from patients and the team’s broad and cutting-edge expertise in these disorders that uniquely positions them to succeed where earlier attempts by pharma, going at it alone, have failed. The team will generate and comprehensively test a panel of PD and ALS patient-derived hiPSC neurons in a suite of state-of-the-art, industry standard, cell-based assays to enable the discovery of novel therapies.

Principal Investigator

Edward Fon , McGill University

Team Members

Guy Rouleau, Montreal Neurological Hospital and Institute

Nicolas Dupré, CRCHUQ-Enfant-Jesus, University Laval

Tom Pfeifer, Centre for Drug Research and Development

Neil Cashman, University of British Columbia

Thomas Durcan, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University

Philippe Seguela, McGill University

Partners and Donors

CQDM

Project Complete

A Patient-Derived hiPSC Neuronal Platform for Drug Discovery in Parkinson’s Disease and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

  • Grant Type

    Platform grants

  • Area of research

    Neurodegeneration

  • Disease Area

    Parkinson's,  ALS

  • Competition

    CQDM - Brain Canada - Focus on Brain

  • Province

    Québec

  • Start Date

    2016

  • Total Grant Amount

    $1,500,000

  • Health Canada Contribution

    $750,000

Contact Us

1200 McGill College Avenue
Suite 1600, Montreal, Quebec
H3B 4G7

+1 (514) 989-2989 info@braincanada.ca

Please note all online donations will receive an electronic tax receipt, issued by Brain Canada Foundation.

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Territorial acknowledgement

The offices of Brain Canada Foundation are located on the traditional, ancestral territory of the Kanien'kehá:ka Peoples, a place which has long served as a site of meeting and exchange amongst nations. We honour and pay respect to elders past, present and emerging, and dedicate ourselves to moving forward in the spirit of partnership, collaboration, and reconciliation. In our work, we focus our efforts on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, particularly those that pertain to improving health for Indigenous Peoples and that focus on advancing our own learning on Indigenous issues.

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Registration number: 89105 2094 RR0001

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  • About
    • What We Do
    • EDI Action Plan
    • Leadership
    • Team
    • Annual Report
    • Publications
    • Careers
  • Brain Conditions
    • One Brain
    • ALS
    • Autism (ASD)
    • Brain Cancer
    • Brain Injury
    • Dementia
    • Epilepsy
    • Mental Illness
    • Multiple Sclerosis
    • Parkinson’s
    • Stroke
    • More
  • Research
    • Programs
    • Funding Opportunities
    • Program Partners
    • Announcements
  • Impact
    • Research Impact Stories
    • Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
    • Brain Health in Indigenous Communities
    • Women’s Brain Health
    • Mind Over Matter
  • How You Can Help
    • Ways to Give
    • Start a Fundraiser
    • Workplace Giving
    • The Great Minds
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