News & Media

April 2004
Director's Corner: A new MNI Program in NeuroEngineering

Big fleas have little fleas
Upon their backs to bite ‘em
And little fleas have lesser still
And so, ad infinitum.
Augustus de Morgan, parody of Jonathan Swift’s observation

We have all been exposed to the term, "nanotechnology," the material science of the very small; one nanometer is a millionth of a millimeter. Incredibly, creating tools (and machines!) on this scale is a reality. The promise of nanotechnology is explored daily in newspapers, magazines, the internet, television - we are immersed in it. If you believe the media, in the near future engineered nanorobots will clear our arteries of plaque, and rid our lawns of micropests. Nanoguitars will play super high frequency music (no one can hear it, but never mind). The contents of the Library of Congress of the United States will someday soon be nanoprinted onto a chip no bigger than my 6 year old daughter's pinky nail.....

Apart from the hype (nanorobots as lawn-doctors?), and the silliness (who would buy a nanoguitar?) the convergence of biology and engineering at the molecular level (nano, and even smaller) is real, and is the next big - no, huge - frontier in Neuroscience. It is a natural outcome of the molecular revolution that occupies so much of our thought now. We can expect that implantable nanodevices will help - not cure, but help - the blind to see, the deaf to hear, and the paralyzed to walk. This is just around the corner, and I am quite serious.

From the MNI's perspective, we can identify several major problems in Neuroscience that are only now approachable because of the stunning recent advances in engineering, physics and chemistry that have sparked the development of nanotools. Fortunately for the MNI, many of the most creative scientists in the "nano field" are right here at McGill. We have already begun to work with them to create new nanotools to explore critical issues in synapse assembly, myelin formation, neuron outgrowth, and brain tumour cell migration. We are developing nanodevices that we can manipulate to positions within neurons, or on nerve fiber surfaces, or within the myelinating cell, to monitor cellular events under very precisely controlled conditions. The nanodevice can be engineered to report back to our scientists in a variety of ways; for example, by light emission that may be detected by the highly sophisticated imaging microscopes that we have at the MNI. We thus will have an unprecedented "window" into the inner workings of neural cells. This is a very, very exciting new direction for the MNI, and I will keep you posted of our progress as we aggressively develop our NeuroEngineering program over the next few months.

Please send any comments about the Director's Corner to david.colman@mcgill.ca

New Advisory Board Member

Dr. Boris Zalc, a physician at Hôpital de la Salpêtrière in Paris and INSERM neurobiologist, will bring scientific perspective and organizational skills to his role as Advisory Board member. Dr. Zalc’s research focuses on the mechanisms of multiple sclerosis.

Faculty Recruitment Dr. JF Cloutier, has arrived. His lab, currently undergoing renovations, will be located in the Fieldhouse.

Drs Christopher Pack, Edward Ruthazer and Marc Sommer will make second visits to the MNI in April. Their seminars generated great enthusiasm and we hope to move forward quickly to successful recruitment of these talented scientists.

Speakers Calendar

For a complete list of Seminars, Lectures and Rounds please check the MNI Calendar.

CIHR Funding News Dr. Trevor Owens and colleagues, Drs. Jack Antel, Amit Bar-Or, Phil Barker and Eric Shoubridge, and other McGill faculty, received a Multi-User Equipment and Maintenance Grant to purchase a four-color flow cytometer for high-speed analysis of normal, pathogenic and tumor cells from the immune and nervous systems. This was one of seven such grants recently awarded to McGill.

Dr. Louis Collins was awarded a Proof of Principle (POP) Grant to investigate automated MRI analysis of neurological diseases for early detection. POP awards help move research to a more advanced stage, ready for future commercialization.

CIHR awards for new faculty members went to Dr. Antonio Strafella (New Investigator Award), Lesley Fellows (Clinician Scientist Phase II Award) and Dr. JF Cloutier (Senior Research Fellowship Phase II Award). The MNI received CIHR Research Personnel Awards for doctoral trainees, Anne Sophie Champod (Michael Petrides), Philippe Chouinard (Gabriel Leonard) and Nektaria Nicolakakis (Edith Hamel); and postdoctoral fellow, Shahin Zangenehpour (Robert Zatorre).

Recent visitors The MNI hosted former students and colleagues of Leon Wolfe from around the world on March 25 at the Leon Wolfe Symposium and inaugural Wolfe Killam Lecture. The lectures and testimony were a living tribute to his legacy and a reaffirmation of his impact on neuroscience and the lives he touched. Professor Jeanne Wolfe and her daughter, Dr. Elizabeth Edwards, were also present for this wonderful tribute to Leon. Hanna Pappius’ commitment to organizing this day of science and recollection was greatly appreciated by all.

Jennifer Robinson, McGill's new Associate Vice-Principal for Communications, toured the MNI on April 13th and met some of our scientists and clinicians.

In the News Dr. Fred Andermann was interviewed about epilepsy in “Percer les mystères de l’epilepsie » in Le Devoir March 20, 2004. “Groundbreaking work at the Neuro” an article by Joshua Karpati in National Review of Medicine (April 15,2004) highlighting some recent research findings from the Neuro.

"Coming Soon: Your Baby's Brain: The Manual" an article featuring an interview with Dr. Alan Evans in The Globe and Mail Saturday April 10, 2004. "We can Build Better Brains" an article featuring an interview with Dr. Tomas Paus in The Globe and Mail Saturday April 10, 2004.

An article of interest appeared in Science (April 2 issue): Canadian Budget: Granting Councils Gain Despite Funding Crunch http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/304/5667/30b?etoc Congratulations

Dr. Fred Andermann will receive the 2004 Ross Award from the Canadian Pediatric Society for excellence in the field of pediatric research, education and child health and advocacy. The award will be presented in June at the Society’s annual conference to be held in Montreal.

Dr. Ken Hastings was appointed Full Professor.

Dr. Preston Robb celebrated his 90th birthday on April 4. Dr. Robb’s career at McGill spanned more than four decades, from 1946-1979. At retirement, he was Neurologist in Chief at the Neuro and acting Chairman of the McGill Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery. He later established the Preston Robb Fellowship for MNI trainees. The Preston Robb Neurological Day Centre on the second floor of the Neuro is named in his honour.