News & Media
Neuro News - June 2006
Director's Corner
Of X-rays, Yellowstone and Viagra
The word "serendipity" was entered into the lexicon by Horace Walpole in 1754. He had become intrigued with a Persian fairytale in which three princes of Serendip, (formerly also Ceylon, now Sri Lanka) traveled the world, "making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of."
The Oxford English Dictionary defines serendipity as "the faculty of making happy and unexpected discoveries by accident." Serendipity plays an important part in research of all kinds, but it operates only in a special environment; as Pasteur famously stated, "Chance favors the prepared mind." In research, what serendipity really means in practical terms is that scientists discover things in the course of their investigations that they were not looking for. Occasionally, serendipity plays a big role in a key discovery.
One excellent example of a serendipitous observation which led to a great discovery occurred in 1895, when Wilhelm Roentgen, working in his darkened lab with a Crooke's (cathode ray) tube, noticed out of the corner of his eye that several feet away, a piece of paper coated with barium cyanoplatinate was glowing faintly. He was puzzled, since the only conceivable source of energy in the room was the tube. When subsequently Roentgen found that sealed photographic plates in his desk had become fogged in the absence of a visible light source, he deduced that a novel form of radiation was being generated in the Crooke's tube. He termed the new radiation X-rays. Within a year after this discovery, X-rays were being applied in diagnostic medicine.
More recently, the multi-billion dollar biotechnology industry in great measure found its origins in a spontaneous, serendipitous detour:
"It would sound reasonable if I were to say that the research work...began as a result of a grand design, with a vision of the goals in mind. Unfortunately, this would not be true. This work began the day I took a detour through Yellowstone National Park on my way to Seattle." (Thomas Brock)
On this, his first visit to Yellowstone, Brock became intrigued with the multi-colored algae mats in the hot springs, and on a whim, took some samples back to analyze in his laboratory. In 1969, Brock and Freese reported the discovery of Thermus aquaticus; this bacterium became one early source from which the heat-stable enzymes were purified that are the key tools in recombinant DNA technologies.
And the pharmaceutical industry has benefited many times from serendipitous observations. Perhaps the best-known contemporary case is that of Viagra, which was originally tested as a treatment for angina. It was almost immediately found to be less effective than nitroglycerine for coronary artery dilatation, but then the patients in the first clinical trial reported an unusual, not at all undesirable and now well-known side effect. It is no wonder that the patients became depressed when the first clinical trials were brought to an end, and it was requested that the unused pills be returned to Pfizer. Pfizer noted that never had so many unused clinical trial pills been reported as "lost, misplaced, or accidentally flushed down the toilet..."
Serendipity still plays a major role in discovery and invention. It is the manifestation of inspiration, and of being in the right place at the right time. To some, it has a certain magic about it that suggests predetermination or intervention by the supernatural, or as Shakespeare wrote: "There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune..." (Brutus to Cassius, in Julius Caesar)
In the end, though, probably the best way to sum up the phenomenon was thoughtfully stated by Julius Comroe: "Serendipity is jumping into a haystack to search for a needle, and coming up with the farmer's daughter."
Please send any comments about the Director's Corner to David Colman
Recent News & Events
New professor at the Neuro
Amir Shmuel will join the MNI in April 2007 as one of the first recruits to
the Montreal Consortium for Brain Imaging Research (MCBIR). Dr. Shmuel
completed his PhD at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel where he
studied the functional organization of the visual system using
electrophysiological and optical imaging techniques. He will come to the
MNI from Tubingen, Germany where he is completing a post-doctoral
fellowship with Nikos Logothetis at the Max-Planck-Institute for Biological
Cybernetics. At the MNI, Dr. Shmuel will continue to use magnetic resonance
imaging methods with electrophysiological and optical imaging techniques to
study the visual system in non-human primates. He will work closely with
colleagues at the McConnell Brain Imaging Centre and with other
neuroscientists at the MNI and McGill.
New Executive Director of External Affairs
Catherine Rowe joined the staff at the MNI on June 5, 2006 as the new
Executive Director of External Affairs. A highly respected and accomplished
development professional known throughout the province and nationally,
Catherine brings twenty years of experience to The Neuro. Previously,
Catherine was Director of Major Gifts at Centraide (United Way) of Greater
Montreal. She spearheaded this program in 2000 increasing leadership and
major individual giving from $7.9 million to $14.5 million over a five year
period. She also recruited highly respected and influential business
leaders to champion and chair the major donor program. A graduate of McGill
(Commerce, 1986), Catherine holds a Masters of Public Administration (1991)
from Carleton University. She is a Certified Fund Raising Executive within
the international Association of Fund Raising Professionals (AFP) and is
President of the Board of Directors for the AFP, Québec Chapter.
New in Neurology
Jeffrey Jirsch has joined the Department of Neurology at the MUHC and will
see patients at the Montreal General Hospital and at The Neuro. After
completing his medical education at University of Toronto, Jeff pursued
neurology training at McGill and completed fellowship training in clinical
neurophysiology at The Neuro and at Columbia University (NY). He has
particular interest in the use of continuous EEG to monitor head injured
and other critically ill patients in the intensive care unit. With his
expertise in clinical neurophysiology, Jeff will be an important part of
the team providing care to patients with epilepsy.
Welcome
Felicia Callocchia will greet you when you call or visit
the Director’s office at the Neuro. Felicia is working as the receptionist
while Enza Ferracane is on maternity leave, and handling other
responsibilities. She had previously managed the office for a small company
in Montreal.
Fellows’ Day
Fellows presented their research at this annual day long conference. Their
work with mentors from The Neuro covered spine and trauma, tumours,
functional neurosurgery and epilepsy, and cerebrovascular surgery. Prizes
for the best presentations were awarded to : Vincent Siu,
In vivo models of malignant brain tumours (Killam Prize);
Scott Mackey, Orafacial representation in Broca’s area
homologue in monkey (First Teuber-Neysmith Prize);
Claude-Edouard Châtillon, Cerebellar neurolipocytoma with
focally high proliferation index: a case report (Second Teuber-Neysmith
Prize); and
Kevin Petrecca, Treatment of recanalized aneurysms
post-coiling (Neurosurgical Award).
As part of the event, Dr. Stephen Nutik from the Permanente Medical Group in California delivered the William Feindel Lecture and spoke on Paraclinoid Aneurysms.
Nurses’ conference day
The Neuro hosted a day long conference on neurological diseases for nurses
from across Canada. Clinical nurse specialists from the Neuro shared their
expertise in identifying and caring for patients with amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis, brain tumours, epilepsy, movement disorders, multiple sclerosis,
and pain. More than 55 nurses attended the conference, which was organized
by Sylvie Lussier and Rosa Sourial, and was sponsored by the Fondation
André Delambre, Berlex and Health Access-Santé. Tours of the Neuro were
organized by Erik De Agnostinis.
International guests
Indian Minister of Biotechnology visits
Dr. M.K. Bahn, Secretary, Indian Department of Biotechnology, lead a
delegation that recently visited The Neuro. The delegation, hosted by
Agriculture Canada, was acquainted with The Neuro through Viji
Ravindranath, Director of the National Brain Research Centre, a research
institute funded by Dr. Bahn’s department. Philippe Eloy, Director of
International Activities, at the Quebec Ministry of Economic Development,
Innovation and Export, co-hosted the group.
Pediatric neurologists visit the Neuro
Pediatric neurologists from around the world toured The Neuro during the
2006 International Child Neurology Congress. MNI faculty were able to renew
friendships: neurologists from Taiwan joined Fred and Eva Andermann for
lunch, and Dr. Xiru Wu from the Peking University First Hospital at Peking
University in was hosted by her former student, MNI Assistant Professor
Weisong Shan.
Upcoming Events
Summer plans
Neuro’s North Wing construction
Construction of the Neuro’s new North Wing will begin this summer. Detailed
plans are being developed to address issues such as ease of access to The
Neuro and Royal Victoria Hospital for patients and employees, traffic
circulation, parking, and health and safety considerations such as
minimizing dust and noise. The North Wing will feature a new accessible
entrance to the Neuro and more convenient out-patient clinics. It will also
provide space for the expansion of the McConnell Brain Imaging Centre and
other research activities.
Fall plans
Neuro Convocation, September 18
The 3rd Annual Neuro Convocation and Lifetime Achievement Awards Ceremony
will be September 18, 2006. Please plan to join us to honour The Neuro’s
finest!
Dorothy J Killam Lecture and Gairdner Foundation program, October
24
Nobel laureate Linda Buck from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
(Seattle) will deliver the Dorothy J. Killam Lecture on October 24. This
lecture will be given at the Centre Mont Royal in conjunction with The
Gairdner Foundation program. Gairdner awardees Ralph Brinster (University
of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine) and Thomas Pollard (Yale
University) will also speak.
Congratulations to …
MNI faculty members Phil Barker and Wayne Sossin who were promoted to Full Professor, and Louis Collins who was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure. These career advancements are awarded to professors who are highly productive researchers and who contribute significantly to the university through teaching and other service.
Jean Gotman who received the 2006 Penfield Award from the Canadian League against Epilepsy. Established in 1982, The CLAE Penfield award is given every year to someone who has made a substantial commitment to combatting epilepsy in Canada.
Director - David R. Colman, PhD
Senior Management - Mark Angle, MD; Tom Gevas; Marilyn Kaplow; Elizabeth
Kofron, PhD; Patricia O'Connor; Catherine Rowe
MNI Bulletin Editors: Elizabeth Kofron, PhD & Sandra McPherson,
PhD
Please send any items for the MNI Bulletin to Sandra McPherson or Beth Kofron.
