Grant: Foundation Grant

<html> <body> <div>The overarching theme of my research program is the development and application of quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques for structural and functional neuroimaging in order to advance our understanding of the healthy brain, to detect disease earlier, and to guide treatment of neurological conditions including multiple sclerosis (MS), stroke, and dementia.</div> <div> <br> My proposed research program has two main sub-themes: <em>Quantitative MRI of MS: Towards Clinical Practice</em> and <em>Brain Activation Physiology in Health and Disease.</em> Quantitative magnetization transfer (qMT) MRI will be pursued as a means to measure the whole brain burden of disease, including cortical pathology, and for tracking focal demyelination and remyelination in MS. The research plan includes development of a clinically viable qMT protocol, evaluation in animal models of MS, and utilization in clinical trials of two remyelination therapies. The second sub-theme involves research to design a functional MRI (fMRI) calibration technique that does not involve respiratory gas manipulation, as is currently required. This simplified technique will greatly facilitate the translation of quantitative fMRI into clinical use. We will also utilize our quantitative fMRI methods to measure cerebrovascular reactivity, perfusion, and oxygen metabolism in the healthy aging brain as well as patients with Moyamoya disease, transient ischemic attacks, cerebral amyloid angiopathy, and mild cognitive impairment.</div> <div> <br> While I will lead this research program it will require the expertise and collaboration of a multi-disciplinary team of scientists and clinicians. The core team consists of 3 basic scientists and 4 clinician-scientists that are international leaders in their respective fields: 1) Dr. V. Wee Yong - neuro-immunology and animal models of MS; 2) Dr. Luanne Metz &ndash; MS neurology and clinical trials; 3) Dr. Jeff Dunn &ndash; MRI of animal models of MS; 4) Dr. Peter Stys &ndash; neurology, white matter pathology, and histological evaluation of myelination; 5) Dr. Eric Smith &ndash; stroke neurology, cognitive neuroscience, imaging, and dementia; 6) Dr. Marc Poulin &ndash; exercise physiology and cerebrovascular regulation; and 7) Dr. Andrew Demchuk &ndash; stroke neurology, imaging, and clinical trials in TIA and stroke.</div> <div> <br> Training and mentorship is integral to the proposed research program. The core research trainee group will consist of 4 postdocs/fellows, 4 PhD students, and 2 MSc students. A specific mentorship plan will be developed for each trainee to address four main goals: 1) formation of a multi-disciplinary supervisory committee to oversee and guide the trainee&rsquo;s research project; 2) acquisition of requisite knowledge for the proposed research; 3) development of oral and written communication skills; and 4) career development. The trainees will also participate in one or more of our many innovative training programs that will advance their technical, communication, and professional skills via training modules, workshop, and internships.</div> <p>Our structural MRI research will provide critically needed methods of evaluating the next frontier of MS therapies that will promote repair and slow progression. Our functional imaging research will enable fMRI to be robustly applied in clinical populations and provide quantitative measures of brain hemodynamics and energetics. This could have a profound impact on the early detection of cerebrovascular and neurodegenerative disease as well as the development of novel therapies.</p> </body> </html>