In 2022 life slowly returned to somewhat normal after two years of pandemic, yet challenges due to COVID-19 remain, especially for the health care system. Despite this, The Neuro’s health care workers, staff, students and faculty have made great strides in patient care and neurological disease research. Here are some of our top stories from 2022.
A Day in the Life
The Neuro continued its A Day in The Life series in 2022, following clinical staff and researchers as they went about their work. This year we followed
- Nancy Anoja, a rare disease genetic counsellor
- Julie Scorah, a neuropsychologist at the Azrieli Centre for Autism Research
- Dr. Jesse Klostranec, a neuroradiologist in the Stroke Unit
Remembering Richard Murphy
In 2022 The Neuro lost Richard Murphy, a former director who in the 1990s recruited a cadre of young molecular neuroscientists, establishing a strong and vibrant molecular and cellular research group. Their research would uncover the mechanisms of brain function and the underlying causes of neurological disorders. Murphy spearheaded the campaign to build the Brain Tumour Research Centre. He was known and highly regarded for his mentorship and as a strong advocate for the faculty, especially those early in their careers. He established an internal grant review process, encouraging colleagues to mentor and guide each other.
Royal Society Inductees
In September two Neuro faculty, Heidi McBride and Nathan Spreng, were inducted into The Royal Society of Canada (RSC), recognizing their contributions to our understanding of neuroscience and the human brain.
New Open Science partnership
Furthering The Neuro’s Tanenbaum Open Science Institute (TOSI) in its goal of promoting Open Science nationwide, the Douglas Research Centre in Montreal joined TOSI in a new OS partnership to share research data and collaborate through the adoption of a set of new institutional principles.
Long COVID study
Led by Dr. Lesley Fellows, the Quebec Action for Post-COVID (QAPC) study began recruiting men and women living in Quebec, aged 18 years and older who report the presence of symptoms that developed during or after their COVID-19 infection, lasting more than four weeks and that cannot be explained by another diagnosis.
New director for the Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU)
The EDDU got a new director in 2022. Tom Durcan will lead the EDDU team as it develops human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to explore new targets for neurological disease treatments.
Autism voices across the spectrum
Researchers at McGill University reported in May their flexible interviewing protocol, called Autism Voices, with 33 participants pulled from the longitudinal Pathways in ASD study.
Expanding Parkinson’s study
A Parkinson’s study underway at the Clinical Research Unit expanded its patient cohort in May. The thinking behind the Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative from the Michael J. Fox Foundation is that by learning everything we can about how the disease develops and progresses, we can create better targeted therapies and, just as importantly, test them more accurately in clinical trials.
ALS collaboration
In 2022 the Clinical Research Unit became part of CAPTURE ALS (Comprehensive Analysis Platform To Understand, Remedy, and Eliminate ALS), a Canadian initiative that is developing the world’s most detailed and comprehensive picture of the disease. Data from across Canada for this Open Science initiative will be stored at The Neuro's C-BIG open biobank.
Extension to the appointment of Dr. Guy Rouleau as Director of The Neuro
Dr. Guy Rouleau received a three-year extension as Director of The Neuro effective Jan. 1, 2023, as approved by McGill University’s Board of Governors at its meeting of Feb. 10, 2022, and by the Board of Directors of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) at its public meeting of May 13, 2022.
New faces
The Neuro added many new faculty and staff throughout 2022. Here are some of them:
Udunna Anazodo joined The Neuro as an assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery and a member of the Neuroimaging and Neuroinformatics Research Group.
Collin-Michael Antonio joined The Neuro as a nurse manager
Sabrina Burr became the new medical librarian, replacing Eileen Beany Peterson who retired after 22 years serving our patients with helpful medical information.
Justine Cléry became an assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery and a member of the Neurodevelopmental Disorders Research Group and the Azrieli Centre for Autism Research.
Adil Harroud became an assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery and a member of the Neuroimmunological Diseases Research Group
Massimo Pandolfo joined the Clinical Research Unit as a co-director
Pedro Rosa-Neto became a member of the Neuroimaging and Neuroinformatics Research Group and the McConnell Brain Imaging Centre.
Wendy Sculnick became Managing Director of Philanthropy
Lisa Volume became Associate Director of the Centre for Neurological Disease Models
