a report to the iwk community

Transcription

D I S C O V E RY
RESEARCH AT THE IWK HEALTH CENTRE
A REPORT TO THE IWK COMMUNITY
2 0 0 8 - 2 0 09
2008-2009
C E L E B R AT I N G M I L E S T O N E S
The IWK Health Centre marked its 100th anniversary
of caring for children and families in the Maritimes in
2009. A world-class research effort evolved over
these years.
Key milestones on the research journey:
1958: The hospital’s first full-time research program
began in a basement storage room of the Halifax
Children’s Hospital.
1967: As chief of research, Richard Goldbloom began
to foster a top-quality pediatric research program at
the new Izaak Walton Killam Hospital.
IWK Health Centre
5850 / 5980 University Avenue
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
B3K 6R8
2005: The Richard B. Goldbloom Research and Clinical
Care Pavilion opened, doubling research space at
the IWK.
See page 12 for '100 Years of Milestones.’
Research milestones of 2008-09:
The Canadian Center for Vaccinology and Sanofi Pasteur
Vaccine Challenge Unit officially opened in the Goldbloom
Pavilion.
IWK drug discovery researchers showed that the new class
of antibiotics they have developed successfully kills MRSA
infection.
An IWK psychiatrist launches the centre’s first early
On our cover:
intervention clinical research program for youth at risk of
serious psychiatric illness.
Jill and Todd Hatchette enrolled all three of their sons –
Max, Sammy and Jake – in H1N1 clinical trials at the IWK
Health Centre. Jill is a consulting scientist at the IWK, while
Todd is an infectious diseases specialist and medical
microbiologist at Capital Health. Parents first when it comes
to their children’s safety, they are confident that vaccination
is the best way to protect their sons from pandemic influenza.
An IWK epidemiologist plays a lead role in the first
large-scale national study to examine the impact of
environmental/chemical exposures on fetuses and
newborns.
2008-2009
1
MARKING OUR MILESTONES
By Patrick McGrath, Vice President, Research
Milestones originated in Roman times, when carved stones
marked each mile along the empire’s vast network of
highways. Nowadays, we have odometers and geopositioning (GPS) devices to mark our literal progress over
land. The term ‘milestone’ has become a metaphor for a
significant new development or stage.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the IWK and its
predecessor, the Halifax Children’s Hospital – a special
milestone for us and for the Maritime families we serve.
This centennial has been a time to look back on the miles
we have travelled. Our former research leaders joined us
at a celebration this spring to do just that, sharing their
vivid stories of days gone. You will see more about that
evening – and the milestones we have passed over the
course of a century – later on in this report.
One incredibly important milestone of the past that I will
mention here is the 2005 opening of the Richard B.
Goldbloom Research and Clinical Care Pavilion. With the
opening of this beautiful and welcoming space, we
established the largest health centre research facility
in Atlantic Canada.
The Goldbloom Pavilion is now home to the Cheminformatics and Drug Discovery Lab, the Canadian Center
for Vaccinology, the Biomedical MRI Research Lab, and
the newly constructed Sanofi Pasteur Vaccine Challenge
Unit. You will read more about the accomplishments of
researchers in these facilities throughout this report.
Patrick McGrath, in front of the Dr. Richard B. Goldbloom Research and
Clinical Care Pavilion
A milestone that impacted all of us this year was the
sudden transition from economic growth to recession.
This affected all charitable organizations, yet the IWK
Foundation was unwavering in its commitment to research
and provided major support to our research programs.
Remarkably, in spite of the recession, our researchers
captured a record $20 million in external grant funding.
They also attained a record 360 peer-reviewed publications.
Also on the horizon is the opening of the Clinical
Magnetoencephalography Lab, in collaboration with the
National Research Council (NRC). This facility will use the
tiny magnetic fields each of us produces in our brains
to track the development of thinking and perceptions in
babies and children. It will complement work already
underway in the Biomedical MRI Research Lab, another
NRC collaboration, which is imaging in detail structures as
small and delicate as the cochlea of a hamster.
Looking down the road to milestones of the near future, we
soon will see the opening of the Level III Containment Lab.
This facility will allow scientists to work with dangerous
pathogens without risk of contamination.
As we emerge from our first century and look to the road
ahead, it is clear that research will play an increasingly
important role in how we achieve our vision of ‘Healthy
families. The best care.’
2
Celebrating Milestones
2008-2009
VA C C I N O L O G Y R E S E A R C H :
PREVENTING AND MONITORING INFECTIOUS DISEASE
Researchers in the Canadian Center for Vaccinology at the IWK are deeply involved in Canada’s response to H1N1 pandemic
influenza, from clinical trials of the new vaccine’s safety and effectiveness, to surveillance of the flu outbreak as it develops.
At the same time, they are preparing to begin studies in Canada’s first vaccine challenge unit.
3
2008-2009
PANDEMIC PREPARATION
By the time ‘swine flu’ was making news in Nova Scotia
in late April, 2009, infectious disease researchers across
Canada were already gearing up to launch a host of studies
to help the country prepare for pandemic influenza. They
had learned just a few weeks earlier that the federal
government would provide $13.5 million to launch the
Public Health Agency of Canada/Canadian Institutes of
Health Research Influenza Research Network (PCIRN).
“We’ve known for several years it would only be a matter of
time before a new strain of influenza would emerge with the
potential to infect a majority of the population and produce
severe illness in some,” says Dr. Scott Halperin, director of
the Canadian Center for Vaccinology at the IWK and PCIRN’s
principal investigator. “We’ve been strengthening ties
among research groups and working with government and
the pharmaceutical industry to get ready.”
The pandemic virus – now known far and wide as H1N1 –
arrived sooner than expected. The researchers acted quickly
to build the network and formulate their approach to a virus
that was already taking lives.
PCIRN connects all the major medical research institutions
and universities across Canada. Through this network, leading infectious disease experts are assessing the safety,
immunity-generating ability, effectiveness, and uptake of the
new H1N1 vaccine, as well as the how-to’s of fast-tracking
clinical trials and the rollout of immunization programs.
“The H1N1 vaccine uses the same production method as
the vaccine for seasonal influenza,” notes Scott. “Some
H1N1 vaccine also includes an adjuvant, an oily substance
that speeds up the body’s immune response to the virus.”
In Halifax, the researchers are focusing on vaccine safety
and effectiveness. Dr. Joanne Langley, a pediatric infectious
diseases specialist at the IWK, is leading the first wave of
clinical trials in children and adults. “We needed to determine
whether one or two doses are needed to generate enough
antibodies to fend off the H1N1 virus,” says Joanne. “At the
same time, we are closely monitoring participants for any
negative side effects of the vaccine.”
Left: Young children are being enrolled in clinical trials for the new
H1N1 vaccine. Children in the study receive two doses of the
vaccine and are monitored closely for a year to evaluate antibody
response and negative reactions to the vaccine.
Infectious diseases nurse Karen Branscombe practices the procedure
for gowning, gloving and masking prior to entering isolation rooms in
the new Sanofi Pasteur Vaccine Challenge Unit.
Tracking the outbreak
H1N1 is a new virus, so there’s a lot to learn about who it
affects most, and why, and how well vaccines and antivirals
are able to combat severe respiratory illness. This is where
surveillance comes in. Dr. Shelly McNeil, an infectious
diseases specialist at Capital Health, is spearheading a
national effort to track serious outcomes over the course of
the outbreak. Her findings will feed into PCIRN’s databanks,
revealing a comprehensive picture of the impact of the virus,
and the vaccine, nationwide.
“We will continuously evaluate how effective the vaccine
is against hospitalizations and deaths, and for which
people,” says Shelly. “At the same time, we will chart the
characteristics of people who become seriously ill, as well
as what conditions H1N1 seems to make worse… heart
failure or emphysema, for example. We have to learn
how best to care for the people at greatest risk, and who
these people are likely to be.”
The researchers will also keep a close eye on what’s
known as ‘virus drift.’ “If the effectiveness of the vaccine
starts to drop off over the winter, we will know the virus
has mutated,” Shelly explains. “If this happens, the scientists
will have to re-evaluate the genetics of the virus to change
the vaccine for the next flu season.”
4
2008-2009
Translation and training
H1N1 is the current threat but more new strains of the
influenza virus are inevitable in the coming years. As
these viruses evolve, they may become increasingly
deadly. That’s why PCIRN is working to train the next
generation of clinical vaccinology researchers. The IWK’s
Dr. Bob Bortolussi has taken the national lead on this
initiative. He and his colleagues have developed a 22module Web-based curriculum for trainees in a variety of
health disciplines.
T H E S A N O F I PA S T E U R VA C C I N E
C H A L L E N G E U N I T: A C A N A D I A N F I R S T
Canada’s first vaccine challenge unit officially opened at
the IWK Health Centre in July 2009. Equipped with 10
isolation rooms and special ventilation systems, the unit
will enable researchers to rapidly assess the immunitygenerating effectiveness of new vaccines. The unit may
also be used for clinical research in other areas, such as
the transmission of infectious diseases, effectiveness of
antimicrobials, and pharmacokinetics (how drugs are
broken down and eliminated by the body).
Teaming up against influenza: (left to right) Bob Bortolussi is
heading a national initiative to train clinical vaccinology researchers
and translate new knowledge into practice; Shelly McNeil is leading
sur veillance studies to track the H1NI vaccine’s safety and
effectiveness; Joanne Langley is overseeing pediatric and adult clinical
trials; Scott Halperin is leading the national effort underway through
the $13.5 million Public Health Agency of Canada/Canadian Institutes
of Health Research Influenza Research Network (PCIRN).
“It’s a problem-based curriculum that uses case studies
to walk trainees through real-life vaccine research scenarios,”
explains Bob, noting that a dozen trainees have signed on at
the IWK. “They will learn all the elements of good clinical
practice, study design, time management, ethics, and other
facets of clinical research.”
At the same time, Bob is organizing a knowledge translation
clearinghouse so PCIRN and other researchers can more
readily conduct research and share their results with
colleagues and the world: “Ultimately, we must find the best
ways to ensure what we learn about pandemic flu is
translated into clinical practice and public policy.”
In a vaccine challenge study, researchers administer a
vaccine to healthy volunteers and track their antibody
response. Some days or weeks later, they expose
participants to the related pathogen, to see if they
develop symptoms. “We only do vaccine challenge
studies when there is a known treatment or when
the pathogen does not lead to serious illness,” notes
Dr. Shelly McNeil, medical director of the new unit.
Strict safety precautions protect staff from contracting
disease.
Institutions, agencies and companies across Canada
and around the world can conduct studies through the
$5 million unit, which was funded by the Canada
Foundation for Innovation Research Hospital Fund, the
Nova Scotia Department of Economic and Rural
Development, the Nova Scotia Research and Innovation
Trust, and a $1 million gift from Sanofi Pasteur.
Speaking at the event to celebrate the official opening
of the unit and the Canadian Center for Vaccinology,
Sanofi Pasteur’s Vice President Luis Barreto also
announced the company would donate $1 million for a
clinical trial to assess the risks and effectiveness of
mixed pertussis vaccine schedules. Joanne Langley will
lead these trials.
2008-2009
5
DRUG DISCOVERY RESEARCH:
INVENTING A BETTER ANTIBIOTIC
Scientists in the Cheminformatics and Drug Discovery Laboratory at the IWK are using sophisticated software to design
antibiotics that destroy bacteria by blocking their ability to make their own cell membranes. These compounds represent the
first new class of antibiotics to be developed in many years.
Organic chemist Fan Wu works
from computer-assisted plans of
antibiotic compounds to create the
new compounds in the real world.
They are then tested against the
target bacteria.
6
2008-2009
SUPERDRUGS VERSUS SUPERBUGS
It’s no secret that bacteria are mutating faster than drug
companies can tweak their formulas to hit the new targets.
What is secret is the collection of chemical recipes
researchers in the Cheminformatics and Drug Discovery Lab
(CDDL) at the IWK have developed to wipe out some of the
most noxious antibiotic-resistant bacteria on the planet.
One of their prime targets is MRSA – methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus – which is in fact resistant to entire
families of antibiotics. MRSA is a growing concern. It
spreads quickly in hospitals, it is difficult to treat, and it can
lead to deadly complications.
Earlier this year, the CDDL researchers sent their newly
patented anti-MRSA compound to the U.S. National
Institutes of Health for third-party testing. In preclinical
trials, it successfully killed the otherwise drug-resistant
bacteria, with no evidence of toxic side effects.
This milestone finding has taken the scientists to a new
stage in their long journey from inventing, to actually
producing, a new class of antibiotics. They now have proof
of principle and the attention of venture capital firms who
are interested in financing the next stage of the research –
human clinical trials.
While the CDDL itself opened only three years ago, the scientists
behind the lab have been honing their theories for years. Left to right:
Don Weaver, Canada Research Chair in Clinical Neuroscience; Chris
McMaster, Canada Research Chair in Biosignalling; David Byers, Head
of Dalhousie’s Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology.
cell membranes would be an ideal antibiotic target… we
could destroy them without harming cells in the human
host.”
All they had to do from there was design molecules to bind
with bacteria’s lipid-producing enzymes. This task, however,
was beyond their expertise. They needed a collaborator.
New target, new weapon
The new compound was able to kill the MRSA because it
attacked a target no other drug has ever lined up in its
crosshairs before: the bacterial cell membrane.
“We have created molecules that block bacteria’s ability
to produce lipids, the greasy substances that form cell
membranes,” says Dr. Chris McMaster, one of CDDL’s
three co-directors. “With their lipid factories shut down, the
bacteria literally fall apart.”
The idea of targetting bacterial cell membranes emerged
five years ago when Chris McMaster and Dr. David Byers
– both IWK-affiliated professors at Dalhousie Medical
School – began pooling their expertise in lipid metabolism
and bacterial enzymes.
“In studying the pathways and enzymes that bacteria use to
produce cell membranes, we realized the process is entirely
different than the way humans make cell membranes,”
notes David, another co-director. “It struck us that bacterial
As if on cue, Dr. Don Weaver arrived at Dalhousie University.
A clinical neuroscientist, he is also a world pioneer in
cheminformatics – the use of computers to design new
medicinal compounds. Although his focus is on drugs to halt
disease processes in Alzheimer and epilepsy, Don agreed to
join David and Chris on their quest to develop a new class
of antibiotics.
“When they showed up on my doorstep, I knew within
minutes they were on to a very powerful idea,” says Don,
the third co-director. In short order he was able to design
several drugs that blocked membrane formation in virtual
tests on the computer – or, in silico, as Don describes it.
The researchers’ successful proposal to the IWK Health
Centre and Canada Foundation for Innovation landed
them over $4 million to construct and start up the
Cheminformatics and Drug Discovery Lab in the new
Goldbloom Pavilion in 2006. Soon afterwards they launched
a start-up company, DeNovaMed Inc., to take their
antibiotics to market.
7
2008-2009
In the trenches
It takes dedicated day-to-day effort to create, screen,
produce and test vast numbers of compounds, to narrow
the field of potential best drugs from hundreds of thousands
to the small handful required.
Working with the CDDL co-directors, the IWK hired three
full-time employees for the job: Dr. Chris Barden, who did
postdoctoral training in cheminformatics with Don Weaver,
stepped into the role of chief operating officer; Dr. Fan Wu
brought his unique compound-synthesizing skills to the
bench; and Dr. Annette Henneberry arrived with the
molecular biology know-how to test the new compounds
against live bacteria. In the past two years, the original staff
of three has grown to five very busy, full-time PhDs.
Annette Henneberry examines a tray of tiny test tubes. She is pleased
with the results: Fan Wu’s new compound has successfully killed the
superbug, MRSA.
He adds that most antibiotics on the market today are
descendants of penicillin and work only against grampositive bacteria. “Gram-negative bacteria are an emerging
threat and there are few options to fight them.” The CDDL
team is working now to ramp up the potency of several of its
promising gram-negative antibiotics.
The computer on Chris Barden’s desk is not as ordinary as it looks.
On it, he has generated a library of 11 million candidate antibiotic
compounds which he tests, in silico, against target bacteria.
Compounds that show antibacterial activity go on to the next stage
of drug development: synthesis. Chris recently became Nova Scotia’s
first U.S.-certified patent agent, so he is qualified to write and file
the patents for DeNovaMed’s most promising new compounds.
“We have expanded our original range of targets to include
another whole category of bacteria,” notes Chris Barden.
“We started with gram negative bacteria, which include E.
coli and Pseudomonas, a dangerous lung infection that
afflicts people with cystic fibrosis. Now we are also going
after gram-positive strains, such as MRSA and those that
cause tuberculosis, meningitis, flesh-eating disease and
sepsis.”
New horizons
While antibiotics are DeNovaMed’s focus, the CDDL has a
broader drug discovery mandate. In the wider realm of
infectious diseases, Chris McMaster and Chris Barden are
working with the National Microbiology Laboratory in
Winnipeg on potential new antivirals for the treatment of
H1N1, and David Byers is targetting lipid-producing
enzymes in the malaria parasite. At the same time, Don
Weaver continues his pursuit of drugs that will halt neurodegeneration in Alzheimer disease.
Another recent milestone – a $900,000 New Emerging
Team Grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
– puts the team squarely on the road to reaching its goals.
8
2008-2009
M E N T A L H E A LT H R E S E A R C H :
S P O T T I N G H I G H R I S K F O R S E R I O U S M E N TA L I L L N E S S
Anne Duffy is finding early indicators to help clinicians identify children and teens at high risk of developing bipolar disorder.
Early clinical markers open the door to the possibility of early intervention and prevention of severe psychiatric illness.
9
2008-2009
BEATING THE ODDS
Child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Anne Duffy knows
the stakes are high when it comes to youth at high risk
for a serious psychiatric illness like bipolar disorder. Often
emerging in the late teens, untreated bipolar disorder can
seriously impair a person’s ability to pursue a rewarding
career and maintain strong personal relationships. Worse,
statistics show that people with poorly managed bipolar
disorder are 25 times more likely to commit suicide than the
general population.
Yet there is hope. “The earlier bipolar disorder is recognized
and appropriately treated, the greater the chance the patient
will respond to medication and be able to flourish in their
life,” says Anne. To this end, she has launched Flourish:
Mood Disorders Clinical Research Program at the IWK.
She and her team want to know how best to identify young
people who have an especially high risk for developing
bipolar disorder – before they reach full-blown illness.
Known for its cycles of high mood (mania) and depression,
bipolar often begins with depressive episodes. It can
therefore be misdiagnosed and mistreated early in its
course. Antidepressant drugs can trigger agitation, worsen
depression or provoke manic symptoms.
Unlocking family history
Taking a careful family history is one key to correctly
diagnosing bipolar disorder in depressed teenagers. “Family
history is the single most compelling risk factor,” says Anne,
noting that offspring of affected parents are 10 times more
likely than the general population to develop the disorder. That’s
why she’s working closely with Dr. Martin Alda, an adult
psychiatrist at Capital Health, to identify children of bipolar
patients and enroll them in the Flourish program at the IWK.
These high-risk young people see Anne and her team
at least once a year for a comprehensive psychiatric
evaluation. In addition to answering questions about such
things as their moods and feelings, reactivity to life events,
relationships, and exposure to their parents’ illness, the
youngsters may consent to provide blood samples to be
searched for biochemical changes that may unfold as
the disease develops. The researchers complete the same
assessments with a comparison group of children who do
not have a family history of bipolar disorder.
Consenting children in the high-risk study also pay a visit to
the Department of Diagnostic Imaging, where psychiatrist
Dr. Tomas Hajek and his radiology colleagues take an MRI
scan of their brains.
“The structure of the brain may change as bipolar disorder
and associated complications develop,” notes Anne. “We
want to see how physical changes in the brain correlate to
changes in biological signals studied in the blood, and to the
early signs of the disorder observed in the clinic.”
While most children of affected parents will NOT develop
bipolar disorder, up to 20 per cent will develop a major
mood disorder in their lifetime. Among children of high-risk
families in the study, this risk can be as high as 40 per cent.
Revealing risk factors and early markers
The researchers will compare the clinical, psychological,
sociological and biological data of the children who develop
bipolar disorder to the data of those who do not. The
comparison will reveal early markers and risk factors related
to the onset of the disorder.
“Early markers will enable us to pinpoint young people
at ULTRA-HIGH risk for bipolar disorder,” says Anne. “Once
we have reliable ways to identify these youngsters, we can
intervene early with effective treatments to head off the
development of the disease and prevent the profound
episodes of depression and extreme behaviours that it
brings.”
Anne has been working with offspring and siblings of people
with bipolar disorder for years, so she has a good sense of
what some of those early signs may be. “The highest-risk
children are those who experience sleep disturbances or
episodes of extreme anxiety,” she says. “We have not found
significant links between other non-mood disorders – such
as attention and behaviour disorders – and the later onset
of bipolar disorder.”
Temperament and distressing life events may also factor in
the bipolar equation. “Very emotional children of affected
parents who are sensitive to stress and react strongly to
negative events may be more susceptible than their more
equable peers,” Anne says.
Anne holds a Senior Clinical Scholar Award from the
Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine and funding from the
Canadian Institutes of Health Research. The National
Alliance for Research of Schizophrenia and Affective
Disorder in the United States has short-listed her for a
Distinguished Investigator Award.
10
2008-2009
P R E N ATA L R E S E A R C H :
E X P L O R I N G T H E I M PA C T O F E N V I R O N M E N TA L E X P O S U R E S
Linda Dodds wants to know how exposure to environmental toxins during gestation affects unborn and newborn babies.
She is playing a lead role in research to investigate the nature and extent of these impacts.
11
2008-2009
A GENERATION AT RISK?
Perinatal epidemiologist Dr. Linda Dodds can’t help but
wonder how the myriad chemicals that suffuse our world
affect the health and development of fetuses. She has already
learned that high levels of chlorination by-products in drinking
water may contribute to impaired fetal growth and stillbirth.
Now, she and colleagues in 10 other institutions across the country
have embarked on a much more exhaustive investigation.
“We are surrounded by a huge number of chemicals, from
heavy metals and pesticides in our food, to plasticizers in
household products, to pollutants in the air,” Linda says. “Our
national study will examine exposure levels and effects of
numerous common chemicals on the fetus and newborn in
2,000 pregnancies across Canada.”
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Health Canada
and the Ontario Ministry of the Environment have provided
more than $5 million for this massive undertaking. Enrollment
is well underway at the IWK, with nearly 150 women
consenting to take part as of the end of October. “Women’s
response has been incredible,” says Linda. “They recognize
how important it is for our society to take a close look at how
substances in our environment may be affecting our children
before they are even born.”
In-depth chemical analysis
The researchers obtain blood and urine samples from the
mothers at regular intervals throughout their pregnancies.
At each delivery, they collect the cord blood and meconium
(the newborn baby’s first stool). They also take a small sample
of the mother’s breast milk and several strands of her hair.
“Our ability to obtain data on chemical exposures at three
points during pregnancy, at delivery, and during post-partum
is powerful and unique,” Linda says, noting that colleagues
at Health Canada and McGill University are analyzing the
samples to see what toxins and levels the babies were
exposed to in the womb.
Health Canada recently came forward with additional funds so
the researchers can examine the infants at six months of age
for signs they have been affected by their exposures.
“We’re looking for subtle signs that may indicate a negative
effect,” Linda says, adding that they hope to continue to
follow the children for several years. “By the end of the study,
we hope to know which exposures are associated with what
adverse effects.”
A dozen people at the IWK are involved in the study,
including full-time study coordinator Kim Rinaldo, research
assistant Katrina Allen, and part-time study nurse Laurie
Kay. Additional research assistants are on call to collect
cord blood and meconium. Linda credits her team’s
dedication and the support of numerous departments within
the IWK for the centre’s excellent performance in recruitment and data gathering for this study, which will eventually
inform federal policy to protect unborn babies.
Water, water
Meanwhile, Linda is continuing to uncover the effects of
exposure to chlorination by-products in municipal water
supplies. She and colleagues at Queen’s University are
measuring levels of these by-products in study participants’
home water samples, and correlating these results with
measurements of certain biomarkers in the participants’
blood.
“These biomarkers may be signs of early biological changes
in the pathway toward adverse health events including
cancer and poor pregnancy outcomes,” explains Linda. “We
want to compare these biomarkers among women exposed
to high, and low, levels of chlorination by-products.” She
hopes to inform policymakers so municipal water supplies
can be treated appropriately while minimizing the risk of
by-products to the population.
Uncovering new risk factors
Chemicals are far from the only pre-natal risk factors. In the
past year, Linda has found that the prevalence of autism is
higher in babies born to mothers with high pre-pregnancy
weights and/or high weight gain during pregnancy. “More
research needs to be done to confirm this finding and
identify the biologic explanation,” she says. “It would be very
interesting if this is indeed a cause-and-effect relationship.”
In women’s health, Linda and her team have discovered that
women who develop gestational diabetes have a higher risk
of developing type 2 diabetes in the future. They have also
learned that women who are diagnosed with breast cancer
less than five years after delivering their last child have a
poorer prognosis than women who have a longer interval
between delivery and diagnosis.
As with all her findings, Linda aims to inform health
professionals, policymakers, and women, so they can make
decisions in the best interests of women’s and babies’
health.
12
2008-2009
FOCUS ON:
A C E L E B R AT I O N O F R E S E A R C H E X C E L L E N C E A N D
100 YEARS OF CARING
One century ago, on December 20, 1909, the Halifax
Children’s Hospital opened its doors. This milestone
marked the beginning of 100 years of outstanding service
to the children and families of the Maritimes. As the hospital
evolved over the years in close affiliation with Dalhousie
University, so too did a vibrant research effort at what is
now known around the world as the IWK Health Centre.
To recognize the IWK’s centennial and the transformation of
research in those 100 years, Research Services organized
a gala dinner event, ‘A Celebration of Research Excellence.’
More than 125 people converged on the Lord Nelson Hotel
on June 1 to take part in this special evening. The crowd
of researchers, administrators and community members
was joined by a number of special guests – including
families whose lives have been touched by research, and all
five of the gifted leaders who have fostered research at the
IWK since the days of the Halifax Children’s Hospital
The dinner event, chaired by Dr. Alex Gillis, was also an
opportunity to welcome the IWK’s newest researchers (see
page 14).
IWK research leaders, past and present
The evening opened with laughter, as Dr. Alexa Bagnell
guided the past and present research leaders through a
series of reflections on the changes and accomplishments
of the decades passed. Drs. Bill Cochrane, Richard
Goldbloom, Matt Spence, Bob Bortolussi and Patrick
McGrath shared vivid and often funny memories and
insights. The evening ended on a more somber note,
however, as patients and families shared their heartfelt
stories, bringing home the importance of research at the
IWK.
100 YEARS OF CARE
The IWK’s research leaders shared their memories
and perspectives of research at the health centre at
‘A Celebration of Research Excellence’ in June.
Back row, left to right: Bill Cochrane, Patrick McGrath, Bob
Bortolussi. Front row, left to right: Richard Goldbloom, Matt
Spence.
13
2008-2009
100 YEARS OF MILESTONES
1909:
The Halifax Children’s Hospital opened its doors to the children and families of the Maritimes
at the site of the current IWK.
1922:
The Halifax Salvation Army Grace Maternity Hospital, the first maternity hospital in eastern
Canada, opened its doors across the street from the children’s hospital. Benge Atlee arrived
one year later and led Dalhousie University and the Grace to the forefront of obstetrical
advances.
1958:
Bill Cochrane became the first head of research at the Halifax Children’s Hospital. He began
the hospital’s first full-time research program in a basement storage room.
1967:
Richard Goldbloom became chief of research at the newly constructed Izaak Walton Killam
Hospital and fostered a world-class pediatric research program over the next 18 years.
1985:
Matt Spence, basic scientist and clinician, served as chief of research at the IWK, helping
research at the centre grow from strength to strength.
1991:
Bob Bortolussi took the reins and went on to become the IWK’s first vice president of
research. Among his landmark achievements, Bob commissioned the Richard B. Goldbloom
Research and Clinical Care Pavilion.
1992:
The Grace Maternity Hospital relocated to a new facility adjacent to the IWK.
1996:
The two hospitals merged into one – the IWK Grace Health Centre.
2001:
The Salvation Army ceased its involvement and the hospital became the IWK Health Centre.
2005:
The Richard B. Goldbloom Research and Clinical Care Pavilion opened, doubling research
space at the IWK.
2006:
The Cheminformatics and Drug Discovery Lab officially opened in the Goldbloom Pavilion.
2007:
Patrick McGrath stepped into the role of vice president of research, at a time of
unprecedented growth and development in research at the centre.
2008:
The Biomedical MRI Research Lab opened in the basement of the Goldbloom Pavilion.
2009:
The Canadian Center for Vaccinology officially opened, along with the new Sanofi Pasteur
Vaccine Challenge Unit, in the Goldbloom Pavilion.
100 YEARS OF CARE
14
2008-2009
TO P TA L E N T: W E L C O M I N G O U R N E W E S T R E S E A R C H E R S
The IWK community welcomed five new researchers at the Celebration event in May. These talented individuals are
strengthening research efforts in such critical fields as family health, youth mental health, cancer, epilepsy, and newborn
care.
C Y N D I B R A N N E N , Mental Health
A registered psychologist, Dr. Cyndi Brannen is research director in the Centre for Research on
Family Health at the IWK Health Centre and assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at
Dalhousie University. Cyndi holds a CIHR New Investigator Award to develop Strong Starts, Healthier
Futures Together, an education and support program for parents of infants at high risk for
developmental challenges related to premature birth.
A N N E D U F F Y, Psychiatry
Dr. Anne Duffy is director of Flourish: Mood Disorders Clinical Research Program. This new program
aims to find the best ways to identify children and youth at high risk of developing a major mood
disorder. Early identification will enable early intervention and potentially prevent serious illness. Anne
is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Dalhousie University and holds a senior clinical
scholar award from the Faculty of Medicine.
T R E V O R D U M M E R , Epidemiology
Dr. Trevor Dummer joined the IWK and Dalhousie University as a health geographer in the
Department of Pediatrics’ Population Cancer Research Program, the Canadian Center for Vaccinology,
and the Department of Community Health & Epidemiology. Trevor works with Dr. Louise Parker on a
number of projects related to cancer epidemiology, obesity, childhood immunizations and youth health,
and with Dr. Noni MacDonald and Dr. Sarah Manos on youth health and transitions in care for
children and young adults.
M I C H A E L E S S E R , Pediatric Neurology
A pediatric neurologist, Dr. Michael Esser recently moved to Halifax from Calgary to accept the
positions of William Dennis Chair in Pediatric Epilepsy Research and assistant professor in the
departments of Pediatrics and Pharmacology at Dalhousie University and the IWK Health Centre. He
is developing a basic science research program in the area of epilepsy, in general, and pediatric
epilepsy in particular.
W A L I D E L - N A G G A R , Neonatalogy
A native of Egypt, Dr. Walid El-Naggar joined the IWK Health Centre and Dalhousie University as staff
neonatologist and assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics in September 2008. His
research interests include using functional echocardiography to evaluate the cardiovascular status of
newborn infants, particularly preterm babies.
100 YEARS OF CARE
15
2008-2009
PATIENT PERSPECTIVES ON IWK RESEARCH
‘A Celebration of Research Excellence’ was made complete by the family members and patients who spoke openly about
their experiences with the IWK and the impact that research has made in their lives.
Ian and Donna Thompson have lost two adult children
to cystic fibrosis (CF). Donna spoke of the tremendous
advances research has brought to our understanding
of this disease and the hope this brings to other families.
To the CF researchers, she said, “Be assured the work
you do is important to our community and our world.”
Stephanie Cooper told of her struggle with her son,
Owen, and how taking part in the Family Help research
program helped them work through his behaviour
disorder. “My house was a battleground,” she said. “Now
he is well-behaved enough that I could bring him here
with me tonight.”
Kelly-Jo Melanson told the moving story of her
daughter’s rare metabolic disorder and how hard the IWK
staff worked to identify it, seek its causes, and find a
treatment that is saving Grace’s life. “If it wasn’t for the
IWK and the broad outlook people took when diagnosing
her illness, Grace wouldn’t be here,” Kelly-Jo said. “Now
she lives a full and happy life.”
Rebecca Colwell explained how the SAFER pilot
project, which has created a self-care website for
women recovering from hysterectomy, empowered
her after her surgery. “The website gave me a sense of
control,” said Rebecca. “It helped me use my head and
my powers of observation to assess what was really
happening.”
100 YEARS OF CARE
16
DISCOVERIES AND MILESTONES
Research progress is always marked by a series of
milestones along what can be a very long road. The past
year saw IWK researchers make important discoveries
that moved them ahead in their quest for new knowledge,
better treatments and healthier people – of all ages and
stages of life.
Cancer
SHRINKING TUMOURS:
Researchers led by Chris Bowen and Ryan D’Arcy in the
Biomedical MRI Research Lab at the IWK are using MRI
to gauge the effectiveness of a new anti-cancer vaccine.
Their scans of experimental tumours show dramatic results:
the vaccine is capable of eliminating 100 per cent of the
tumours under investigation. Halifax-based ImmunoVaccine
Technologies Inc. produces the vaccine. Known as DepoVax,
it stimulates a powerful immune response to cancerous
tumours that normally evade the body’s immune system.
Child and Adolescent Mental Health
P R E D I C T I N G C H I L D H O O D A N X I E T Y:
IWK mental health researchers have found that toddlers’
temperaments can predict whether or not they will develop
anxiety later in childhood. Valerie Grant, Alexa Bagnell,
Christine Chambers and Sherry Stewart examined how
two types of temperament – unadaptable and fussy-difficult
– contribute to anxiety-related symptoms, using data from
Statistics Canada's National Longitudinal Survey of Children
and Youth. They found that fussy-difficult two and threeyear-olds (easily upset, difficult to soothe) are pre-disposed
to anxiety between the ages of six and nine. Unadaptable
toddlers (shy, cautious, emotionally restrained with new
people/situations) are more likely to develop anxiety at age
eight to nine. Early temperament did not significantly predict
2008-2009
anxiety at age 10 to 11 years, however, suggesting that
environmental factors may contribute more to anxiety than
temperament as children get older.
SHEDDING LIGHT ON ADOLESCENT
DEPRESSION AND SUICIDE:
Since April 2007, Stan Kutcher, Sun Life Financial Chair
in Adolescent Mental Health, has trained more than 700
educators and health professionals across Canada
(including IWK employees) in the Understanding Adolescent
Depression and Suicide: Education Training Program.
Pre- and post-training tests have shown that the program
successfully improved educators’ knowledge by an average
24 per cent, while health professionals registered an average
post-training knowledge improvement of 20 per cent.
I D E N T I F Y I N G R I S K F O R E AT I N G
DISORDERS:
Researchers in the IWK Eating Disorders Clinic have found
that children who are trying to lose weight are at higher risk
of developing an eating disorder. Psychologists Joanne
Gusella and Jacqueline Goodwin and their research team
examined the risk of disordered eating (fear of being
overweight, binge eating, risk of self-induced vomiting) in
a sample of boys and girls in grades six, seven and eight.
They found that grade eight girls were most likely to be
trying to lose weight, that most of the children who were
trying to lose weight were in a healthy weight range, and
that ‘trying to lose weight’ increased a child’s chances of
being at high risk for disordered eating by tenfold.
Immunology and Infectious Disease
U N D E R S TA N D I N G A L L E R G Y :
Tong-jun Lin and his colleagues have unravelled some of
the complex mechanisms that lead to allergic disease. They
have discovered that a protein known as Rcan1 suppresses
17
2008-2009
the activation of those mast cells
that rely on signals from that alert
the immune system to the presence of foreign substances and
hence play a central role in
triggering allergy. However, the
researchers have found a new link
between Rcan1 and another
protein, Egr1. While Egr1 is critical
in the activation of mast cells, it also promotes the
production of the mast-cell suppressing Rcan1. Based on
these findings, they suspect that dysregulated expression of
Rcan1 and Egr1 play a role in the development of allergy.
PREVENTING RSV INFECTION:
RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) is the leading viral cause of
severe bronchiolitis in infants. This common childhood lung
infection can also increase future risk of asthma. In
partnership with researchers at GlaxoSmithKline, Robert
Anderson and Yan Huang in the Canadian Center for
Vaccinology have developed a promising nasal vaccine
candidate for RSV. Their aim now is to refine the vaccine in
preparation for preclinical studies and, eventually, clinical
trials.
C R E AT I N G A C H L A M Y D I A V A C C I N E :
Jun Wang’s program to develop the first Chlamydia vaccine
reached several important milestones this year. She
successfully built her team, which now includes a research
technician, graduate and undergraduate students, and a
postdoctoral fellow, and obtained funds from multiple
sources, including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research,
Canada Foundation for Innovation, Nova Scotia Health
Research Foundation, MITACS and the Nova Scotia Lung
Association. In addition, she presented several abstracts and
published a paper in Infection and Immunity that sheds light
on why Chlamydia causes chronic inflammation in some
hosts but not others.
IWK CEO Anne McGuire (right) met with health professionals in
many disciplines and locations on a team trip to Cuba in 2009.
REACHING OUT TO CUBA
IWK CEO Anne McGuire and IWK colleagues Noni
MacDonald, Jeff Scott and Beth Halperin visited Cuba
in the spring of 2009 to learn more about Cuba’s health
care system and how it works at the community level.
“We see areas where we can learn from them and where
they can learn from us,” says Noni. “For example, we were
intrigued by their high vaccine uptake rates. Here in
Canada, we have been studying factors behind low vaccine
uptake rates in Nunavut and among health care workers
here at the IWK. We’re interested in doing a collaborative
study with Cuba to understand these differences.”
The IWK is making plans to twin with a hospital in Cuba to
promote more information sharing and cooperative
research projects in the future.
18
International Projects
SHARING RESEARCH SKILLS IN UGANDA:
Canadian Center for Vaccinology clinician scientists Bob
Bortolussi and Noni MacDonald travelled to Uganda in
June 2008 to teach clinical research skills to health care
professionals through the Healthy Child Uganda project.
About 20 professionals took part in the two-week course.
Healthy Child Uganda is funded by the Canadian
International Development Agency with additional support
from the Canadian Paediatric Society and the University of
Calgary. Doug MacMillan is IWK’s point person.
2008-2009
RESEARCH DESIGN COURSE
G R A D U AT E S F I R S T C L A S S
Interdisciplinary Research (IDR) reached an important
milestone in 2009, with the graduation of the first class
from its Fundamentals of Research Design course.
Rebecca Sittle (occupational therapist), Ali Fakir
(registered nurse) and David Morris (surgeon) are the
first graduates of the 12-week course, launched in
2007-08 and taught by Jill Hatchette and Holly
Etchegary.
New communities of practice
E A S I N G C H I L D PA I N :
IWK researchers and colleagues in Thailand are making
great strides in their efforts to improve pediatric pain
management in northeastern Thailand. IWK anesthesiologist
Allen Finley is co-principal investigator of the four-year
project, funded through a Global Health Research Initiative
Teasdale Corti Team Grant. The researchers have launched
an interactive website, newsletters, and a host of other tools
for collecting and sharing information about children’s pain
management. Twenty Thai nurse facilitator champions are
building awareness and support in seven participating
hospitals, while project leaders are making progress in
their work with hospital administrators and health care
professionals to put pain management guidelines and
education programs in place.
IDR plays a key role in building research skills, capacity
and collaboration at the IWK. In 2008-09, IDR
facilitated several research communities of practice,
which bring together professionals from many
disciplines to share knowledge and plan research
directions. The Pediatric End-of-Life Care Research
Community of Practice was most active over the past
year, evolving into two large groups of clinicians,
researchers and policymakers.
In addition to these activities, IDR organized and hosted
a health services research conference on ‘Evidence
Informing Action,’ conducted workshops on such topics
as critical social theory, grant writing and effective
literature reviews. IDR also organized monthly research
forums, lunch and learn sessions, and gave numerous
presentations throughout the year. IDR helped a
number of research groups obtain funding over the
year, including a $150,000 grant from the Nova Scotia
Health Research Foundation for Sara Kirk, Sheri Price
and Janet Curren’s study, ‘Obesity Management: the
Invisibility of a Visible Epidemic.’
19
2008-2009
Christine Chambers
and her research team
in the Centre for Pediatric Pain Research
received funding from
the Canadian Institutes
of Health Research to
support their research
examining the role of
early “everyday” pain
experiences – such as minor bumps and scrapes – in
teaching young children how to respond to pain. They have
also been an active part of the Help Eliminate Pain in Kids
group. Led by Anna Taddio at the University of Toronto, this
group has been summarizing the evidence that supports
various ways of relieving the pain of immunizations for
children. This work will lead to the development of clinical
practice guidelines for preventing and managing immunization pain.
Neuroscience
‘ F L I G H T- T E S T I N G ’ B R A I N S U R G E R Y :
IWK-affiliated scientist and National Research Council (NRC)
neuroscience group leader Ryan D’Arcy played a key role
in the launch of the world’s first neurosurgery simulator
prototype in Halifax in August. The NRC-led project involved
clinicians and scientists from across Canada, with key
clinical input from the Brain Repair Centre at Dalhousie. The
simulator allows surgeons and residents to plan and
rehearse complex brain surgeries in a virtual environment,
so they know precisely how to avoid damaging critical areas
of the brain (sight, speech, hearing, locomotion) during the
real operation. The soon-to-be-opened Magnetoencephalography Lab at the IWK will contribute key brain-mapping
data to the researchers as they continue to refine the
technology over the next 18 months.
N U R S E P L AY S P I V O TA L R O L E I N
EMERGENCY RESEARCH
Eleanor Fitzpatrick has a finger on the pulse of more
than 20 research studies in the Emergency Department
at the IWK. A registered nurse with more than 20 years
of clinical experience, Eleanor became the department’s first research coordinator five years ago. The
research program has taken off since passing this
milestone, with Eleanor playing as much the role of
investigator as coordinator. Her frontline nursing experience gives her the clinical insight to frame relevant
research questions and design workable studies to
answer them.
Eleanor works with fellow investigators in fields as
diverse as respirology, neurology, psychology,
toxicology, and education, on a wide range of
collaborative projects. One new project is testing an
educational program designed by IWK psychologists to
teach parents and children how to reduce the
discomfort of painful procedures through distraction.
Meanwhile, a long-term national study is defining
the conditions that demand a CT scan when a child
presents with a minor head injury – so children who
need them get them, but those who don’t can avoid the
radiation-intensive test. Knowledge translation –
finding ways to put research evidence into clinical
practice – is a key component of many studies in which
Eleanor is involved.
20
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
IWK scientists enjoyed outstanding success in local,
national and international funding competitions in
2008-09. A number of individuals shone in the
spotlight of peer recognition for their achievements.
Here are some prime examples.
NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH
AWARDS
Victoria Price received a two-year grant from Baxter
Healthcare Corporation, a leading provider of therapies that
save and sustain the lives of people with haemophilia,
immune disorders, cancer, infectious diseases, kidney
disease, trauma, and other conditions.
Christine Chambers’ Canada Research Chair in Pain and
Child Health and Donald Weaver’s Canada Research Chair in
Clinical Neuroscience Health were both renewed.
2008-2009
LOCAL AND REGIONAL RESEARCH AWARDS
Anne Duffy and Natalie Yanchar were named 2008
Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine Clinical Research Scholars.
Penny Corkum received a capital equipment grant from
Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation.
Stacy O’Blenes received a grant from the Heart and Stroke
Foundation of New Brunswick to examine the importance of
timing when repairing heart-attack damage with skeletal
myoblast transplants.
Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation (NSHRF)
grants:
Jason Berman received a grant to generate a transgenic
zebrafish model of NU98-H0XA9-mediated high-risk AML
(acute myeloid leukemia.)
CANADIAN INSTITUTES OF HEALTH RESEARCH
(CIHR) AWARDS
Janet Curran received a NSHRF knowledge transfer/
exchange grant to look at interventions for improving
asthma management in children and adults in emergency
settings.
Susan Bryson received a CIHR grant for her work, with
Peter Szatmari, to understand the genetic epidemiology of
autism.
Ronald George received funding to conduct a randomized
clinical trial of pregabalin for post-operative pain in women
undergoing abdominal hysterectomy.
Christine Chambers and Patrick McGrath, Christopher
Moore, Barbara Morrongiello, and Natalie Yanchar
received a five-year CIHR operating grant to study everyday
pains in young children.
Camille Hancock-Friesen received an NSHRF Special
Consideration Award for her project on expanding the
research team and focusing on the research plan.
Elizabeth Cummings is co-principal investigator on a CIHR
grant to explore Canadian healthy-active lifestyles policies.
Holly Etchegary is a co-investigator on the CIHR
‘Emerging Team in Genomics in Screening’ grant.
Patrick McGrath is co-principal investigator on two recent
CIHR grants – one to organize the SUPER-KIDZ Consensus
Conference and another to conduct a randomized trial of
distance treatment for oppositional defiant disorder.
Shelly McNeil is co-investigator on a new CIHR team grant
to look into optimizing health care workers’ uptake of the
H1N1 vaccine during the influenza pandemic.
Nancy Murphy is a co-investigator on a CIHR team grant to
look at surveillance strategies for identifying adverse drug
events.
Sheri Price received a CIHR fellowship to examine how
early socialization influences the millennial generation to
enter nursing.
Dawn MacLellan received a grant to conduct a metabolomic analysis of a kidney obstruction model.
Sarah Manos received a grant to explore the impact of
increasing the pediatric age limit at the IWK Health Centre.
Louise Parker received a grant to conduct an audit of
linked administrative databases used to register deaths in
Nova Scotia.
Isabel Smith received funding to study the generalization
and maintenance of early intervention effects in autistic
spectrum disorders.
Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation student
research awards:
Michael Amon for a postdoctoral fellowship
Debbie Johnson Emberly and Erin Moon to pursue
doctoral degrees (PhD)
Maura Donovan and Shannon MacDonald to pursue
masters degrees
21
2008-2009
RECOGNITION AWARDS
Ryan D’Arcy received the Emerging Professional of
Distinction Award at the 2008 Discovery Awards gala
in November. This award recognizes intellectual
achievement, excellence and the potential for ongoing
growth and development.
Stan Kutcher was presented with the 2008 CCNP Medal by
the Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology. The
award honours individuals who have made an outstanding
contribution to neuropsychopharmacology in Canada.
Chris McMaster received the prestigious Greg Ferrier
Award from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia.
IWK RESEARCH AWARDS
In 2008-09, the IWK invested more than $870,000 in
research program awards. Generous donations helped
fund a significant portion of the year’s research
awards, which include operating grants, human
resource development grants and special honours. The
Scientific Review Committee assessed nearly 68
applications and awarded funds to more than 60 per
cent of the applicants.
work on the effects of prenatal immune challenges on
newborn seizures.
Partnership awards: In 2008-09, IWK invested over
$167,000 in partnership awards, seed funding that enables
researchers to attract funding from outside agencies. Sara
King received a partnership award which allowed her to
complete the Canadian Child Health Clinician Scientist
Program, a Canadian Institute of Health Research career
enhancement program.
Graduate studentships: These awards provide funding
to graduate students, vital players on every principal
investigator’s research team. The IWK granted three
graduate studentships in 2008-09. Nisa Renault received
one for her work, with supervisor Wenda Greer, to investigate mapping, modelling and medical issues in women
and girls expressing hemophilia A.
Summer studentships: These student awards are designed to stimulate early interest in research among
undergraduate students in any health-related field. Julie
Longard was one of 18 recipients in 2008-09. She worked
with Susan Bryson to examine the role of inhibition in
false-belief tasks in autistic and typical development.
Highlights
SPECIAL HONOURS
Operating grants: These important awards cover
research operating expenses.
A number of IWK awards are named in honour of a
donor or person affiliated with the centre. These special
awards are given to applicants who receive the highest
ratings from the Scientific Review Committee.
Category A operating grants – up to $4,000 each –
were awarded to 10 individuals. Projects range from MarieClaude Gregoire assessing the quality of life of
adolescents living with cystic fibrosis, to Grace MacConnell
studying nurses’ experiences of providing bereavement
follow-up care.
Category B operating grants – up to $15,000 each –
were awarded to two investigators. Marsha CampbellYeo, a neonatal nurse practitioner, received one to study cobedding as a comfort measure for twins undergoing painful
procedures. Genetic counsellor Janet Marcadier received
funding to determine the carrier frequency of nine
autosomal recessive diseases in the Acadian population,
using samples from newborn screening blotters.
Establishment awards: These awards help recruit and
establish new researchers in women’s and children’s health,
by providing funds for renovation, short-term salary support
and start-up operating grants. Michael Esser, IWK’s
inaugural William Dennis Chair in Pediatric Epilepsy
Research, received an establishment award to continue his
2008-09 recipients:
Thompson Scholarship: Erin Moon is applying her interest
in clinical psychology to look at the socialization of pain,
particularly the impact of gender on parental behaviour during a
child’s pain. Supervisor: Christine Chambers
Heinish Studentship: Kristina Bradley is investigating the
awareness and attitudes of depression in rural adolescents
and their families. Supervisor: Patrick McGrath
Burnstein Studentship: Gurdeeshpal Randhawa is
looking at the innate immune response to commensal
and pathogenic streptococci. Supervisors: Song Lee and
Scott Halperin
Auxiliary Grant Award: Janet Marcadier, a counsellor
with Maritime Medical Genetics, is studying carrier
screening in the Acadian population.
22
2008-2009
FOCUS ON:
THE IWK FOUNDATION
SUPPORTING A WORLD CLASS
RESEARCH EFFORT
The IWK Foundation works hand-in-hand with Research
Services and its growing community of donors to identify
and fund top research priorities. At the same time, its
ongoing efforts through the annual Telethon provide IWK
researchers with a consistent source of internal grants that
allow them to pursue new research questions
“Thanks to the combined efforts of all of these people, the
foundation is able to help fund those things that make the
IWK a world-class institution,” says Brad. “That means a
new fleet of incubators and state-of-the art operating suites
in the here and now, as well as innovative research
programs that will protect and enhance the health of
women, children and families in the future.”
“We are fortunate at the IWK Foundation – the health centre
has a stellar reputation and so many great stories to tell
about research,” says Brad Jacobs, the foundation’s Vice
President of Development. “The work they are doing is truly
world class and people are taking notice. More donors are
expressing an interest in supporting research; they want to
make an impact that will be felt far into the future.”
World class generosity
Individuals, community organizations and businesses all
give generously to the IWK Foundation. One Maritime family,
impacted by the IWK, recently gave a $750,000 gift to
support ongoing research in children’s cancer at the centre.
Another private donor, Dr. Norman Barrie Coward,
bequeathed over $3.2 million to the foundation. His gift will
provide ongoing funding for children’s health research.
The IWK Foundation played a key role in securing $1 million
from Sanofi Pasteur to provide cornerstone funding for the
new Sanofi Pasteur Vaccine Challenge Unit at the IWK. The
first of its kind in Canada and one of only a few in the world,
the unit will expedite the development of new vaccines.
Another corporate donor, RBC, provided $50,000 to help
launch YooMagazine, an interactive health literacy initiative
for young people in Canada. The website and associated
research projects are co-led by IWK psychiatrist Dr. Alexa
Bagnell.
“Our donors have continued to give generously, in spite of
the recession,” notes Brad. “We received half a million
dollars in new major gifts last year, and raised a total
of $11.6 million. Of this amount, over $2 million was
channelled to research.”
In addition to the generosity of its donors, volunteer
leadership from both the IWK’s Board of Directors and the
foundation’s Board of Trustees has played an integral role in
the foundation’s success.
T E L E T H O N M A R K S S I LV E R
ANNIVERSARY
The IWK Telethon celebrated its 25th year in May
2009, a milestone that marks a quarter century of outstanding generosity from the people of the Maritimes.
The 2009 Telethon raised $5.4 million for the IWK.
Of this, $1.4 million will go to support research at the
health centre.
This year’s Children’s Miracle Network Champion
was MacKenzie Colp (right) of Liverpool, Nova Scotia,
here with her mother, Jeanie Colp (left). Since being
diagnosed with CHARGE syndrome shortly after her
birth, MacKenzie has spent a lot of time at the IWK. She
represented the health centre at a host of Telethonrelated events.
23
2008-2009
RESEARCH FUNDING AND ACTIVITY
5
2008-2009
4
A RECORD YEAR
1
Research productivity has risen steadily over the past few
years at the IWK, reaching new records in external funding
and publications in 2008-09. This growth is due to the
arrival of many talented new researchers, expansion of
research facilities, and success rates in national and
international funding competitions that outstrip national
averages. Teamwork, enthusiasm and a willingness to share
ideas and resources have also fuelled this growth trend.
Investment by the IWK, affiliated departments at Dalhousie
University, and the Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation
(DMRF), has played a key role in recruitments and infrastructure, along with partnership funding to attract external
grants.
INTERNAL RESEARCH FUNDING
2
3
IWK OPERATING GRANTS:
$390,466
1
CATEGORY A & B GRANTS
$87,133
2
EQUIPMENT REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE
$13,100
3
PARTNERSHIP AWARDS
$167,811
4
RECRUITMENT AND ESTABLISHMENT
$102,422
5
CATEGORY L
$20,000
The IWK invested more than $1 million in research in
2008-09, including infrastructure support and $870,000 in
funding to research programs. These funds foster research
capacity by investing in people, equipment and projects.
6
5
1
4
2
ETHICS IN CLINICAL RESEARCH
3
HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT AWARDS:
$481,212
1
SCHOLAR AWARDS
$100,000
2
INVESTIGATORSHIPS
$48,000
3
FELLOWSHIPS
$120,000
4
ASSOCIATESHIPS
$111,620
5
GRADUATE STUDENT SCHOLARSHIPS
$66,940
6
SUMMER STUDENTSHIPS
$34,652
All research involving humans requires review and
approval by the IWK Research Ethics Board (REB) before
it can begin. The REB assesses research proposals for
ethical acceptability using the following documents:
Tri-council Policy Statement of Ethical Conduct for
Research Involving Humans: Good Clinical Practice:
Consolidated Guidelines International Conference on
Harmonization; and Health Canada’s Health Products
and Food Branch Inspectorate.
The REB reviews all research projects involving humans
underway at the IWK, including new projects, renewals
and changes to current projects, as well as adverse
event reports. In 2008-2009, the REB reviewed a record
2,581 submissions.
24
2008-2009
PUBLICATIONS
EXTERNAL RESEARCH FUNDING
In spite of the recession, outside funding for IWK research
topped a record $20 million in 2008-09. External sources
of funds include national agencies and granting bodies,
disease-specific foundations, provincial funds and foundations, affiliated academic institutions, and industry or
government contracts.
6
78
The number of faculty and trainee publications in peerreviewed journals has continued to grow. In 2008-09, IWK
researchers shared their findings in 360 publications: 342
journal articles, 15 book chapters and three books.
While translating findings to clinical practice is the ultimate
aim of research, publication for review by the scientific
community is an essential step along the way. Publications
are a key measure of research productivity and quality.
5
P U B L I C AT I O N S O F M E M B E R S O F T H E I W K
R E S E A R C H C O M M U N I T Y, 1 9 9 8 - 2 0 0 8
3
360
1
340
4
320
2
300
EXTERNAL AWARDS:
$ 20,186,538
1
CANADIAN INSTITUTES OF HEALTH RESEARCH
$7,219,128
2
NATIONAL AGENCIES
$2,910,651
3
CLINICAL TRIALS
$2,857,936
4
CANADA FOUNDATION FOR INNOVATION
$2,277,872
5
DISEASE-SPECIFIC FOUNDATIONS
6
PROVINCIAL FUNDS AND FOUNDATIONS
7
DALHOUSIE AND DMRF
8
INDUSTRY
280
260
240
220
200
$641,646
$4,038,920
$172,985
$67,400
180
160
140
120
AWARDS IN MILLIONS
GRANTS AND AWARDS 1998 – 2008
100
20
80
18
60
16
40
14
20
12
0
98
10
8
99
00
PUBLICATIONS
01
02
03
04
BOOK CHAPTERS
05
06
07
08
BOOKS
6
4
2
0
98
99
EXTERNAL
00
01
02
INTERNAL
03
04
05
06
07
08
For a complete list of 2008-09 publications by IWK
researchers, visit: www.iwk.nshealth.ca and follow the links
from ‘Research.’
25
2008-2009
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
April 1st, 2008 – March 31st, 2009
RESEARCH ETHICS AUDIT
COMMITTEE
RESEARCH MANAGEMENT
COMMITTEE - PROGRAMS
Barbara Christianson
Debbie Matheson
James Morrison
Anthony Otley
Erna Snelgrove- Clarke
Karin Wallace
Vicky Allen
Harold Bawden
Susan Bryson
Linda Dodds
Ron El-Hawary
Allison Gray
Thomas Issekutz
Patrick McGrath
Robin Walker
RESEARCH ETHICS BOARD
Darlene Baxendale
Jill Beis
Robert Bortolussi
Kelly Cameron
Peter Camfield
Elaine Cumming
Cora Fanning
Conrad Fernandez
Linda Hamilton
Adam Huber
Noni MacDonald
Sarah Matheson
Susan McKinney
James Morrison
Pierre Schmit
Valerie Shaffner
Isabel Smith
Marilyn Tiller
RESEARCH MANAGEMENT
COMMITTEE – ETHICS
Jennifer Feron
Debbie Matheson
Patrick McGrath
James Morrison
Diann Nicholson
Anthony Otley
Christy Simpson
Robin Walker
Joan Wenning
RESEARCH OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
Anthony Armson
Rita Caldwell
Krista Connell
Gerard Corsten
Martha Crago
Allan Horsburgh
Gerald Johnston
Jonathan Kronick
James Lambie
Raymond LeBlanc
Patrick McGrath
Anne McGuire
Diann Nicholson
Herb Orlik
Robbie Shaw
Chris Soder
George Turnbull
Jocelyn Vine
Robin Walker
RESEARCH SPACE ALLOCATION AND
UTILIZATION COMMITTEE
Dawn McLellan
Stephen Smith
François Tremblay
SCIENTIFIC REVIEW COMMITTEE
Victoria Allen
Brenda Beagan
Ryan D’Arcy
Linda Dodds
Scott Halperin
Jill Hatchette
Thomas Issekutz
Fergall Magee
Patrick McGrath
Roger McLeod
Amy Ornstein
Barbara Stonehouse
RESEARCH SERVICES STAFF
(as of December 2009)
Yasmin Ali
Frank Bezanson
Suzanne Bolt
Yvonne Cake
David Fillmore
Jill Hatchette
Kathleen Leadon
Joanne Leonard
Patrick McGrath
James Morrison
Diann Nicholson
Michelle Patenaude
Alyson Rees
Krista Ritchie
Kathy Webber
Beverley White
Christine Chambers
Linda Dodds
Donna Gilmour
John LeBlanc
Tong-jun Lin
Timothy Mailman
Credits: Melanie Jollymore, writing and project coordination; Greg Tutty, design and layout; John Sherlock and Gerard Walsh, original photography.
We would like to thank:
IWK Foundation
Dalhousie University
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canada Foundation for Innovation
Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council
Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council
Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation
and many others...
for their generous support of research at the IWK Health Centre.
Healthy families. The best care.

a report to the iwk community

Transcription

Similar documents

Tignish Credit Union wins Coady Award

Clear Direction - IWK Health Centre

The Village News - IWK Health Centre

Towards Sustainable Sewerage Development

Standard Menu - IWK Health Centre

Vaxtracker for National Vaccine Safety Surveillance

Willow Leaf February 2014

Fulvio Esposito Plenary Presentation

May 2013