Section of Translational Neuroscience

THE SECTION OF TRANSLATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE (STN) in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences consists of nine primary members distinguished by their PhD background. Research areas for members include neurodegenerative diseases, movement disorders, pain, fragile X syndrome and multiple sclerosis (MS), with a focus on understanding the pathogenesis of these disorders and the discovery and translation of new therapies into the clinic. These therapies include those that may reduce injury to the compromised nervous system and those to promote repair of the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system.
 

• Dr. Shalina Ousman is an associate professor and a member of the Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Spinal Cord/Nerve Injury and Pain Brain and Mental Health Teams at HBI. Her research is focused on investigating endogenous protective mechanisms in MS and peripheral nerve regeneration. In regards to her MS work, Dr. Ousman is investigating the molecular factors that drive dysfunction of astrocytes but also those factors that can boost remyelination. She is also trying to understand why relapsing-remitting MS patients progress to a progressive form of the disease. Her peripheral nerve injury studies are focused on understanding why Schwann cells become dysfunctional in the injured aging peripheral nervous system. Her research is currently funded by CIHR and MS Canada. (https://cumming.ucalgary.ca/labs/neuroimmunology/research) 
• Dr. Bin Hu is a professor specializing in Parkinson’s disease (PD) research. He is a member of the Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI), and directs an international program of rehabilitation therapy for patients living with PD. The Ambulosono program currently has a large group of active users in seven countries, which has attracted broad attention not only from academic institutions but business and art communities that support music and mind research. He has published a series of articles documenting the power of music in helping Parkinson’s patients in overcoming freezing gait. Dr. Hu’s research has been supported by CIHR, Parkinson Association of Alberta, AIHS and Branch-out Foundation for Neurological Diseases. Alberta Health has recently announced that they will provide Dr. Hu with a large team grant to help multiple non-government organizations in the province to set up an online system entitled ACSCON (Access-Connect) through which patients will be able to receive non-pharmaceutical and rehabilitation assistance from health coaches.  
• Dr. Hedwich Kuipers is an assistant professor of neuroimmunology and joined the HBI MS NeuroTeam in April 2018, holding a membership at the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases as well. Her research is aimed at understanding the interaction between immune cells entering the CNS and its resident cells. Her main focus is on astrocytes, whose role in neuroinflammation is often overlooked. She has shown before that these cells, which are highly abundant in the brain, can release factors that help T lymphocytes infiltrate into CNS tissue. She currently investigates how astrocytes interact with these T cells and how they shape their responses, using molecular and cell biology approaches, as well as animal models of MS. In addition, she studies how astrocytes are affected by the oxygen levels they encounter, which can vary in different disease states. Dr. Kuipers’s research is supported by CIHR, MS Canada, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation and the HBI. 
• Dr. Minh Dang Nguyen is a professor and a member of the Dementia and Cognitive Disorders Team at HBI. His research focuses on brain vascular function and the role of the gut microbiome in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (https://www.cytoskeletonexus.com/). His lab uses a multi-omics approach combined with cellular molecular biology and human samples to understand disease mechanisms. His work is currently supported by grants from the Krembil Foundation (2021-2024), CIHR / International Development Research Centre (2022-2025), the Rose family Foundation (2022-2024), the Barry Barrett Foundation (2021-2025) and CIHR – sex gender health (2024-2029). Over the years, his trainees have secured prestigious awards including the Brain Behavior Research Foundation Young investigator award (2022-2024) and the Alzheimer Association fellowship (2023-2026). He is stepping down the position of co-director of the Graduate Program of Neuroscience in July 2024.  
• Dr. David Park is a professor and Director of HBI. His research program focuses on the mechanism of neural injury in stroke and Parkinson’s disease (PD) as well as some fundamental aspects of neural development. He is also the lead of the Brain and Mental Health Strategy for the University of Calgary and he chairs Campus Alberta Neuroscience which knits together the three major sites of brain research in Alberta (Calgary, Edmonton, and Lethbridge). Since 2019, he has published seven papers in journals such as Aging Cell, J Biological Chemistry, J Neurochem, Cell Death and Disease, and Science Translational Medicine. His current interests are focused on understanding how genes associated with PD function or dysfunction to lead to disease progression. In this regard, he has recently shown that the LRRK2 gene may play a critical role in immune function and regulation, and he is currently screening drugs for potential candidates for human trials. 
• Dr. Scott Ryan’s lab strives to answer fundamental questions in neuroscience, develop new tools for collaborative investigation into the mechanisms underlying neurological disorders and train scientists in the areas of molecular neuroscience and stem cell biology. (http://www.neurobiology.ca/)
• Dr. Raymond Turner’s research can be found at https://hbi.ucalgary.ca/our-members-and-trainees/our-members/full-members/profiles/raymond-w-turner
• Dr. V. Wee Yong is a professor who co-directs the MS Brain and Mental Health Team at the HBI and he is the director of the Alberta MS Network. His research interests have been guided by MS and glioblastomas, and findings have been translated into clinical trials in these conditions. Dr. Yong’s publications have been cited over 22,500 times (Web of Science, h index: 85). His research activities are supported by CIHR (Foundation grant), MS Canada, and the Canadian Cancer Society. Dr. Yong is the recipient of the 2017 Allyn Taylor International Prize in Medicine for “transformational discoveries in MS”. He is a fellow of both the Royal Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. Dr. Yong takes pride in his laboratory supervision: in the past 4 years, 6 trainees graduated from their PhD programs and 4 postdoctoral trainees have taken on faculty positions in Canada and Germany.  
• Dr. Gerald Zamponi received his undergraduate training in Engineering Physics from the Johannes Kepler University in Austria, followed by a PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Calgary and postdoctoral work at the University of British Columbia in Canada.  He is currently the Senior Associate Dean for Research and Full Professor in the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary. He previously served as the Head of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology. Dr. Zamponi’s broad research focus has been on the roles of voltage gated calcium channels in controlling the electrical activities of neurons, how they are compromised in various neurological disorders and, more specifically, how they can be targeted for the development of new therapeutics for pain. A second major area of interest is to decipher the functional connectomics of brain circuits that control sensory and affective components of pain.

Education

Members offer graduate and postdoctoral fellowship studies in basic and translational neurosciences, as well as year-round research projects for senior undergraduates, fellows, and summer research programs.

Translational Program

STN is in a unique position to foster cutting edge translational neuroscience research. We are somewhat different from the basic science departments in that our program has a clear mandate to facilitate and integrate research and education between the clinic and the laboratories.

Work by our members, in collaboration with our neurology, neuro-oncology and neurosurgery colleagues, has resulted in a successful Phase III clinical trial in MS, an ongoing Phase III trial in traumatic spinal cord injury, and a soon-to-start Phase I/IIa trial of niacin in glioblastoma.