2007 - Dr. Donald Weaver, Departments of Medicine and Chemistry; School of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Don Weaver is using computers to custom-design drugs that will cut off Alzheimer disease and epilepsy at their roots. “I’m developing molecules with the right dynamic fit to block the underlying disease processes,” says Dr. Weaver, a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Neuroscience at Dalhousie. “I’m aiming to cure, not just alleviate symptoms or slow progression.” Click here for full story.
2006 – Dr. Neale Ridgway, Atlantic Research Centre
Since joining the Faculty of Medicine and Atlantic Research Centre in 1991, Dr. Neale Ridgway has made his scientific mark nationally and internationally. Professor in the departments of Pediatrics and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Dr. Ridgway is a noted world expert in the synthesis, transport and regulation of two of the most abundant and important lipids in the human body – cholesterol and sphingomyelin. His revelations about the signals and pathways that control these lipids are having a profound impact on our understanding of the origins and progression of such diseases as Alzheimer’s, atherosclerosis, cancer and Neimann-Pick. His groundbreaking work is frequently cited by other scientists in the literature, a key indicator of his influence and achievements.
2005 – Dr. Kenneth Rockwood, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine
A prolific researcher and dedicated clinician, Dr. Rockwood is renowned for defining the concept of frailty in the elderly and the links between aging and poor health. Among his many endeavours, he is identifying and tracking the effects of Alzheimer treatments, and leading the development of technological solutions to the challenges of daily living for people with Alzheimer Disease.
2004 - Dr. Andrew Issekutz, Departments of Pediatrics, Pathology and Microbiology & Immunology
A leading light in inflammation research for more than two decades, Dr. Andrew Issekutz joined Dalhousie in 1979, and served as Head of the Division of Immunology, Rheumatology and Infectious Diseases from its inception in 1990 until 2003. Throughout the years, he has held continuous funding from the MRC and its successor, the CIHR – a testament to the quality of his research. His discoveries about mechanisms of inflammation have helped develop the current gold-standard treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, while his latest work shows tremendous promise for preventing and even reversing rheumatoid arthritis. It may even lead to an effective new therapy for asthma.
2003 – Dr. William Currie, Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology
A professor in the Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Dr. William Currie has made many vital contributions to the understanding of a class of stress proteins called heat shock proteins. He made the first discoveries that stress induces heat shock proteins in the brain and other tissues, findings that were reported in Science. Later, he discovered that heat shock induces tolerance in the heart to subsequent ischemic injury – a finding which gave rise to the study of inducible endogenous cellular protection as a strategy for protecting the heart and brain from ischemic injury.
2002 – Dr. Harry Robertson, Department of Pharmacology
Former head of the Department of Pharmacology, Dr. Harry Robertson is known worldwide for his contributions to the field of molecular neurobiology. He has been a visionary force in the creation of the Brain Repair Centre, and has made many significant contributions to the understanding of a wide range of neurological and psychiatric disorders. He has focused intensely on Parkinson’s disease in recent years, and is working on a variety of promising approaches for treating and even curing this devastating neurodegenerative disease.
2001 – Dr. Gerry Johnston, Microbiology & Immunology, and Dr. Rick Singer, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Long-time cancer research collaborators Dr. Gerry Johnston and Dr. Rick Singer received the first annual $10,000 Max Forman Senior Research Prize. Drs. Johnston and Singer were pioneers in the use of yeast cells as a model for the study of cell function and behaviour – an approach which has since been adopted by many labs worldwide. They have been working with yeast models for three decades, learning how cells work at a detailed molecular level, and contributing to the understanding of how and why cancer cells proliferate.
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