Arthritis is among the most common chronic conditions in Canada in both children and adults. Arthritis is a potentially disabling disease causing joint inflammation and pain. Increasingly, people suffering from arthritis are using alternative therapies including nutraceuticals. This research aims to create new knowledge about the synergistic effects of gamma-linoleic acid (GLA), eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) […]

The objective of this project is to develop lipid nanoparticle (LNP) reagents for the delivery of nucleic acids to turn off, or turn on target genes in “hard-to-transfect” neurons and stem cells in vitro and in vivo. A recent report (BCC Research, April 2011) observed that “51% of researchers employ cell-based techniques to perform transfection […]

Parent-child interaction significantly impacts child language learning and influences what is considered appropriate when communicating with others, which can vary from culture to culture. These caregiver-child interactions become extremely important when the child has a hearing loss. However, if the expectations of the family differ from those of the therapist serving the child, there could […]

Despite the high prevalence of Inflammatory Bowel diseases (IBD) in industrialized countries, particularly in Canada, the mechanisms controlling these debilitating gastrointestinal pathologies remain poorly understood. IBD is though to arise from an uncontrolled immune response to the intestinal microbiota, inducing a persistent inflammatory reaction in the gut. Death of epithelial cells and loss of epithelial […]

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is caused by an immune attack on the nerve and muscles junctions and manifests as severe and sometimes life threatening muscle weakness. A number of effective immune modifying medications are available for MG. Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) – a fraction of blood harvested from thousands of donors and containing high concentration of immunoglobulins, […]

This research project will investigate retirement planning among academic physicians within the Department of Medicine (DOM) at the University of Toronto. The overall objective of this project is to investigate the range of perspectives held by members of the DOM about retirement and to develop a later career transition assessment tool that will facilitate institutional […]

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) treatment in model systems for wound healing, spinal cord injury and heart disease have demonstrated a greater versus the ‘vehicle’ treated group due to the cells ability to engraft and contribute to new tissue as well as decrease apoptosis and inflammation. All of these properties are associated with superior tissue healing. […]

Recent studies have shown that interactions between beings and the environment, including social practices and human behavior, have an impact on the susceptibility to develop chronic diseases such as cancer, through epigenetic modifications or telomere shortening. The term epigenetic applies to the modifications that regulate gene expression without modifying the DNA sequence. Furthermore, telomere is […]

There is an urgent need for the development of new tools that can provide a relatively highthroughput, objective assessment of brain function in individuals with neurodevelopmental, neurodegenerative or psychiatric disorders. The overarching objective of this research proposal is to use eye movement tasks to identify biomarkers that can be used in the assessment of brain […]

OrthoEvidence gathers the most up-to-date, high-impact literature articles, summarizes them and sends out Advanced Clinical Evidence (ACE) reports to subscribers. A random group of residents in Pune, India at the Sancheti Institute of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation will have access to the mobile app?s targeted OrthoEvidence ACE reports based on their specialty while the control group […]

Developing countries are faced with finding novel and humane ways to permanently reduce and control their dog populations. This is especially important for the sustainability of canine disease control and public health programs. Understanding the demography of domestic dog populations is central to the design of effective dog population management and zoonotic disease control interventions, […]

The goal of this proposal is to clarify the reasons for an increased burden of serious bacterial infections caused by two common pathogens: Haemophilus influenzae and Streptococcus pneumoniae in Canadian First Nations. Methodology includes comparative analysis of the critical parameters of naturally acquired immunity against these pathogens in adult First Nations individuals living in two […]