For our youngest and oldest, advances are being made in tackling neurological diseases
Groundbreaking medical research is producing treatments to combat severely disabling neurological diseases. From the youngest Canadians drawing their first breaths to the oldest, this innovative research aims to extend lifespans and improve quality of life for people of all ages. As a neurologist and director at the Toronto Memory Program, Dr. Sharon Cohen is on the cutting edge of these advances. The Toronto Memory Program is a multidisciplinary, community-based memory clinic and clinical research site specializing in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. According to Cohen, one recent success story in Alzheimer’s research is the Spartan Cube, a technology developed by Spartan Bioscience Inc. in Ottawa. The device helps researchers identify a risk factor gene for Alzheimer’s disease that facilitates the participation of appropriate individuals in clinical trials aimed at Alzheimer’s prevention and treatment. “The Spartan Cube is essentially the world’s smallest and most portable device to test DNA and specifically, the APOE gene which is of interest in Alzheimer’s disease. “And it does that on the spot, without having to send a biological sample to an external laboratory. Using just a cheek swab, the device can provide results within an hour and at a fraction of the cost.” That’s important because it can speed up the identification of subjects likely to be eligible for Alzheimer’s clinical trials, and can also lower the screen failure rates for those wishing to join such studies. Today’s clinical trials are essential to the development of new treatments not only to address symptoms or slow down a disease that has already taken hold, but also to prevent the onset of the disease in individuals who have no symptoms whatsoever. “The prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease is rising, the mortality from the disease is rising and the costs to individuals and society are rising,” says Dr. Cohen. “With Alzheimer’s we’re dealing with a very challenging disease of the brain, which must be addressed as an urgent health care priority.” Discoveries in the lab and developments in brain imaging and genetics are helping to expose some of the mystery, she says. “Clinical trials must embrace new knowledge and move forward with bold and innovative approaches aimed at eradicating Alzheimer’s disease and not simply treating symptoms. Success requires an innovative and bold approach involving the collaboration of scientists, clinical researchers, pharmaceutical companies and the community at large.” The federal government has made innovation-based growth a key focus of the Canadian economy; a strategy that should make it easier for research and innovations like The Spartan Cube to be developed in Canada. Dr. Cohen notes that madein-Canada research is important not only to this country, but to the world. “The quality of our research is uniformly high,” she says. “Watching the Spartan Cube being adopted in research efforts worldwide is testament to that.” While promising research is advancing the fight against a disease that primarily affects older Canadians, similar advances show promise in a disease that strikes our youngest. Researchers are currently working to defeat spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a rare genetic disease that affects approximately one in 6,000 babies born worldwide. The disease causes accelerated, irreversible death of motor neurons, which leads to progressive loss of muscle function. Few patients with the most severe form of SMA survive their second birthdays. However, a team at the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR) in Cambridge, Massachusetts is conducting promising research at the genetic level to encourage the production of a protein called survival motor neuron (SMN), which these patients lack. Pharmaceutical research aims to stimulate the production of SMN using a patient’s own backup gene, which performs a similar function. The scientific progress is promising, and so despite the research being costly and the outcome uncertain, the team forges onward in hopes of developing a cutting-edge treatment for SMA. It’s an example of an innovative treatment that could have a huge impact on the lives of families all over the world — and it’s just one example. There is no shortage of innovation in the pharmaceutical industry, and with the right balance of innovative public policy and an environment supportive of scientific discovery, the formula can continue to yield immeasurable benefits for Canadians who need solutions for their ailments.