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Funded Grants

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Repairing nerve cell connections in Alzheimer’s disease

Project Overview

The loss of connections between nerve cells is an early indicator of Alzheimer’s disease. The loss of these connections also causes difficulty thinking and processing information. Unfortunately, we do not yet understand why this connection loss occurs. Research has shown that the structures that make up the connections become unstable and then are lost. And we have an idea of the processes that might be involved, but do not have certainty about all of them. What causes the loss of nerve-cell connections, and can we prevent their loss? These questions are at the heart of this study, which will focus on a protein called pannexin 1. This protein increases in cells of people living with Alzheimer’s disease. It also destabilizes nerve-cell connections. This study will explore whether targeting pannexin 1 can help prevent the loss of nerve-cell connections.

Principal Investigator

Leigh Anne Swayne , University of Victoria

Partners and Donors

Alzheimer Society of Canada

Project Ongoing

Repairing nerve cell connections in Alzheimer’s disease

  • Area of research

    Neurodegeneration

  • Disease Area

    Alzheimer’s

  • Competition

    Alzheimer Society Research Program (ASRP)

  • Province

    British Columbia

  • Start Date

    2023

  • Total Grant Amount

    $100,000

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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